Ever fancied a modern-day Lotus Elise? The sports car you see here seems to be all that and more, but the big talking point is its revolutionary battery.
The Nyobolt EV is the result of a collaboration between British design and engineering firm Callum and battery producer Nyobolt.
It comes with a 35kWh battery that’s said to be capable of fully charging in just six minutes, using existing charging infrastructure. Nyobolt says the sports car can achieve a range of up to 250km between charges.
This, of course, has huge potential implications for the booming electric car industry, which is stymied, to a degree, by the long periods it takes for customers to charge the batteries.
Nyobolt says its new lithium-ion battery technology is ready to deploy, with production expected to commence in early 2024.
The battery is smaller and lighter than traditional batteries and makes less use of scarce raw materials.
While the unit in the Nyobolt EV show car has a capacity of just 35kWh, relying on the vehicle’s light kerb weight of just over a tonne to achieve a reasonable driving range, the company says its technology can also be applied to larger batteries, which could be made to charge within a few minutes as soon as 1MW chargers become available.
The firm says its battery technology is ready for immediate application and rapid scale-up if needed.
What’s more, the breakthrough does not appear to sacrifice battery life, says Nyobolt. It tested its batteries for more than 2 000 fast charge cycles, without finding any significant performance loss.
The company has not detailed exactly how its batteries work but believes the technology could revolutionise the EV space.
“Unlocking the challenges faced by electric vehicle designers has been key to the development of our breakthrough fast-charging batteries,” said Nyobolt CEO Sai Shivareddy.
“Previously, enabling a light weight fast-charging vehicle was not possible without compromising its lifetime and so people have been relying on costly and large battery packs in the vehicle. With our unique technology, we have achieved a six-minute charge car, and developed smaller battery packs that can deliver more power and charge in less time.”
The sports car revealed this week was designed by renowned designer Julian Thomson. He sought to create a modern day Lotus Elise, albeit one with more contemporary lines and more exaggerated proportions that make it longer, lower and wider.