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General Motors made the decision to invest in a California-based startup called Mitra Chem. The automaker will spend about $60 million in financing for the said firm that develops cheaper batteries for electric vehicles.
General Motors is investing in Mitra Chem to help it produce better EV batteries that are more affordable too. On Wednesday, Aug. 16, the company confirmed that it is leading a $60 million financing round for the startup.
According to CNBC, Mitra Chem was established by Toyota Motor and Tesla Inc veteran executives. The founders are working together to develop lower-cost EV batteries. These new types are said to be made based on lithium iron phosphate chemistry.
Moreover, the battery is called LFP, and this abbreviation was formed based on the chemical symbols of the elements that make up the product. Lowering the price for such kind of battery is possible because Mitra Chem is not using expensive minerals that are commonly used by other battery makers such as nickel and cobalt.
The LFP cells are also used by major EV makers for their cheaper electric car models. Although their power density is lower compared to expensive batteries, these types of cells were already proven to be sturdy in EVs.
“This is a strategic investment that will further help reinforce GM’s efforts in EV batteries, accelerate our work on affordable battery chemistries like LMFP and support our efforts to build a U.S.-focused battery supply chain,” General Motors’ vice president of technology acceleration, and commercialization, Gil Golan, said in a press release. “GM is accelerating larger investments in critical subdomains of battery technology, like cell chemistry, components, and advanced cell production processes. Mitra Chem’s labs, methods and talent will fit well with our own R&D team’s work.”
