Clarios, Natron launch sodium-ion battery collaboration

Sodium-ion batteries offer a number of advantages compared with their lithium-ion counterparts. Natron Energy, Inc. has spent ten years perfecting sodium-ion battery chemistry for mass manufacturing, and in 2021 released the world’s first UL listed sodium-ion battery product. It has now entered into a strategic agreement with Clarios International Inc. that will result in the world’s first mass-produced sodium-ion batteries. The Clarios-owned Meadowbrook facility in Michigan, USA will become the world’s largest sodium-ion battery plant when volume production begins in 2023.

The partners foresee use in electric vehicles and grid energy storage as additional future applications for these products, which Natron currently primarily offers for critical power applications such as data centres and telecom networks. Critically, Natron’s sodium-ion batteries do not contain lithium, cobalt, nickel, copper, or other minerals that have driven recent pricing volatility of the lithium-ion supply chain. Without conflict minerals, dependency on foreign mining projects or scarce materials, customers can be confident of the availability of Natron batteries at stable pricing. Additionally, Natron sodium-ion batteries do not experience thermal runaway, making them safe for transport and disposal without the risk of fire.

Natron’s batteries are manufactured using the same tools and equipment used for lithium-ion manufacturing. This similarity in manufacturing requirements enables Natron and Clarios to leverage a portion of the Clarios Meadowbrook lithium-ion facility for sodium-ion manufacturing, at a lower cost and faster time to market compared to building a new factory.

Sharing experience

“Clarios is excited to work with Natron to ramp-up a promising energy storage solution. As the demand for energy storage increases across applications, we see the potential for this technology to address critical needs,” says Craig Rigby, Clarios vice president, technology. “As a world leader in battery technology, Clarios is invested in sharing its experience in the emerging battery space and to provide expertise in scale manufacturing for advanced technologies.”

Under this agreement, electrodes and large format cells based on Natron’s proprietary Prussian blue electrode sodium-ion chemistry will be manufactured in the Meadowbrook plant, which has produced automotive lithium-ion cells for the past decade. With support from the U.S. Department of Energy, Natron will install new cell assembly equipment in the Meadowbrook plant to enable mass production of sodium-ion cells for its customers in the industrial power market.

“This project marks the beginning of a new era for Natron, in which we move from product development to serving our customers at a massive scale. Natron is grateful for the continued support from ARPA-E and Clarios which has helped make this project possible,” says Colin Wessells, founder and chief executive officer of Natron.