Raphael Thys
A Cambridge University professor’s ultrafast EV battery startup has raised $59 million in Series B funding. Nyobolt aims to develop a battery that can achieve 5-minute EV charging time.
EV charging in 5 minutes
Goslar, Germany-based H.C. Starck Tungsten Powders (HSC), a wholly owned subsidiary of Hanoi-headquartered Masan High-Tech Materials, the largest manufacturer of mid-stream tungsten products outside of China, led the funding for Cambridge, UK-based Nyobolt.
H.C. Starck will help Nyobolt scale up its R&D and manufacturing centers in the UK and US, as well as its battery recycling program.
Nyobolt’s executives say it’s currently focusing on developing batteries for high-performance racing EVs, and that its batteries could be ready for use in mass-market EV models later this decade, according to Reuters.
Hady Seyeda, CEO of H.C. Starck Tungsten Powders, said:
Nyobolt’s technology is a real breakthrough that we can help commercialize based on our vast experience in transferring innovative solutions into large-scale manufacturing. This partnership is also going to accelerate the development toward a circular economy for batteries via enhanced recycling and new models of use.
The Telegraph explains how Nyobolt is using niobium and tungsten, both stable metals often used to strengthen steel or create steel alloys, to develop battery anodes:
The startup uses battery research developed by Cambridge University scientist Dame Prof Clare Philomena Grey. Nyobolt’s battery anodes use niobium, a gray, crystalline metal, and tungsten, which charge batteries more rapidly.
The company said its technology allowed batteries to be charged to 90% capacity in less than five minutes, while improving power and durability tenfold.
Dame Grey said:
We are excited to move our technologies from development to deployment in the market. We founded Nyobolt following the discovery of new anode technologies containing tungsten with remarkable fast-charging capability to bring these properties to the market in applications touching all aspects of daily life. The funding from H.C. Starck will help Nyobolt to scale up our operations in the UK and the United States and bring a more sustainable solution into the energy storage industry.
Electrek’s Take
There are startups all over the world working on improving EV battery performance, and the EV industry needs all that brain power. But Nyobolt is definitely one to watch.
I’d be curious to know how difficult it will be to scale up this type of battery. Niobium is more plentiful than lead and less abundant than copper, an abundant metal that might see a potential future shortfall, but tungsten is classified as a rare metal. How will their supply of those metals affect this company’s ability to scale?
H.C. Starck Tungsten Powders has access to the world’s largest tungsten reserves outside of China, so its investment in Nyobolt makes sense.
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