SALZGITTER (dpa-AFX) - Europe's largest car manufacturer Volkswagen has reported a success in the development of the solid-state cell, which is regarded as the next generation of electric car batteries. A solid-state cell battery has now passed a long-term test in the VW laboratory in Salzgitter, the Group subsidiary responsible for the battery business, PowerCo, announced on Wednesday. The cell had completed more than 1000 charging cycles, which corresponds to a total range of around 500,000 kilometers, according to PowerCo, as previously reported by the "Handelsblatt".

The battery cell developed together with US partner QuantumScale was reportedly tested over several months in the laboratories of VW battery subsidiary PowerCo in Salzgitter. The Group is currently building its first own battery cell factory there. According to PowerCo, the cell still had over 95 percent of its capacity at the end of the long-term test. This means that it even significantly exceeded the test requirements.

"These are very encouraging results that impressively underpin the potential of the solid-state cell," said PowerCo CEO Frank Blome. "At the end of this development, we have a battery cell that enables long ranges, can be charged super-fast and practically does not age."

QuantumScale CEO Jagdeep Singh announced that he now wanted to get the new technology ready for series production "as quickly as possible". However, there is still work to be done. According to Handelsblatt, initial pilot production with small quantities is planned for the end of 2024. By the end of 2025, the number of units will then be significantly increased, the newspaper reports, citing the QuantumScale boss. After that, series production will begin.

The solid-state cell is regarded in the industry as the next big step in battery development. Unlike the lithium-ion batteries previously used in electric cars, a solid electrolyte is used instead of a liquid one. Manufacturers are hoping that this will result in a greater range, faster charging and less wear and tear.

Other manufacturers have also been working on this new type of battery technology for years. BMW wants to build a pilot plant in Parsdorf near Munich together with its partner Solid Power and is planning its first test vehicle with a solid-state cell before 2025, according to earlier information. Nissan has announced a first pilot plant in Japan for 2024, while Toyota declared in the fall that it intends to bring the technology into series production by 2027./fjo/DP/he