More Sodium-Ion Batteries Are Suddenly Emerging

The article discusses the recent surge in interest and development of sodium-ion batteries, highlighting the US startup Unigrid, which aims to compete directly with China’s leading battery maker CATL. Founded in 2021 and based in San Diego, Unigrid leverages research from the University of California – San Diego and has received significant support from the California Energy Commission (CEC), including grants to develop and pilot production of solid-state sodium-ion batteries. These batteries replace traditional flammable liquid electrolytes with safer, ceramic-based solid electrolytes, offering potential advantages in safety, longevity, and cost for stationary energy storage applications such as home, commercial, and utility-scale use. Unigrid’s pilot production line targets manufacturing cylindrical sodium-ion batteries that can serve as drop-in replacements for existing battery technologies, with an initial output goal of 250-750 batteries per day. While the company is focusing primarily on stationary storage rather than electric vehicles for now, it has plans to eventually expand into transportation applications. Despite sodium