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The new Hyliion batteries can charge in eight minutes.
Courtesy of Hyliion
Stock in the hybrid and electric heavy-duty truck technology company
Hyliion
spiked Thursday after a shocking announcement about new EV battery technology. The next generation tech itself is good news, but the news also showed nervous investors that Hyliion could be a long-term winner in vehicle electrification even if hydrogen fuel cells or battery-powered electric trucks come along. all out of their conventional hybrid offerings.
Hyliion
(ticker: HYLN) They announced a battery system using lithium-titanate-oxide technology from
Toshiba
(6502. Japan), rather than the most common lithium-ion batteries. LTO has a lithium titanate based anode instead of a graphite battery anode, among other differences.
LTO batteries offer faster charging times and longer life than some other options, but they cost more and are less energy efficient. That means the LTO batteries, for the most part, do not hold as much electricity.
But energy density is not everything, and the needs of battery users are changing. Hyliion LTO technology can get full charge in eight minutes. With such a short charge time, Hyliion can reduce the size of its battery packs, cutting battery charge per vehicle.
The cost of eight minutes would look incredible to anyone
Tesla
Owner (TSLA). Electric cars take more time to charge, but that is usually not a problem for car owners who put vehicles in their garages for the night. Long charging times can be a problem, however, for businesses that use their vehicles as close to 24 hours a day as possible. “We can charge the vehicle as long as the driver gets a coffee,” says Hyliion CEO Thomas Healy. Barron’s.
Hyliion gets its next-gen batteries to charge ultrafast not only thanks to their chemistry, but also by cooling the battery cells. “The largest number [with fast charging] the temperature is, ”says Healy. “We extract heat from the cells more efficiently. ”
Cooling adds cost to the system as well, but with a small battery pack enabled at a cost of eight minutes, the company’s new powertrain option would be perfect for application as a drayage, where trucks are always moving short-distance vessels around shipping yards, for example. Such trucks do not require a large, heavy battery that lasts 500 miles. They just need to keep enough cost to power the vehicle so a driver has to take a bathroom or coffee.
Hyliion expects its LTO battery models to be ready for launch by the end of this year.
Shares of Hyliion rose 32% on Thursday, giving up 9% on Friday as the S&P 500 rose 0.5%. Fast cost technology is good, but that’s not the only reason to raise them. With the emergence of EV startups, investors are already worried that Hyliion’s disruptive technology could be disrupted. As batteries improve and hydrogen fuel cells benefit, hybrid solutions may become less popular.
Another Hyliion product, the Hypertruck ERX class 8 semi, uses an on-board natural gas generator to recharge batteries on the fly. It’s like that one
Li Auto
(LI) carries with the LI LIE electric SUV. Onboard generation enables smaller, lower priced battery packs. It also reduces the weight of the total powder, which is important for long-distance shipping in commercial applications. Sailors want to haul goods, not batteries, after all.
The question some investors have about hybrid solutions like the Hypertruck ERX is, basically, what happens if batteries and hydrogen get too good? LTO technology shows that Hyliion has its own solutions for such a future.
Healy says Hyliion could be a battery supplier to other truck manufacturers, as well as installing its new battery technology in its own vehicles. He also believes that batteries will still be part of many other powertrains, even those using hydrogen fuel cells. Hyliion wants to have the best solutions for whatever powertrain truckert technology is used in the long run.
Analysts have not yet responded to LTO battery technology. Hyliion has three inspectors covering the stock. One rate shares Buy, one Hold, and the other Sell. About 30 analysts, on average, cover stock in the
Dow Jones business average.
Write to Al Root at [email protected]