Californian battery developer Amprius Technologies has received an order for its innovative lithium-ion cells worth 15 million US dollars. The customer wishes to remain anonymous, but it is a “leading Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) manufacturer,” according to Amprius.
The major order is for the Californian battery developer’s SiCore cells, which are primarily intended for aviation, light electric vehicles and supercars. According to Amprius, the order follows successful field tests and qualifications and secures the customer the critical supply for the start of production. The company expects to deliver the cells in the second half of this year.
This is possible because Amprius has established partnerships with several contract manufacturers “across a network of established Asia-based manufacturers,” which enables “immediate availability of GWh scale production capacity without incremental capital expenditures and delay for factory construction.” In this way, Amprius sees itself in a position to “meet the growing demand for high-performance batteries.”
The battery developer only announced in January that it was diversifying its range of battery cells and unveiled its new SiCore cell in the process. The new addition to the Californian company’s development portfolio is said to guarantee “both endurance and fast energy supply.” According to the company, the energy density of the cell is 370 Wh/kg, and the power density is over 3,000 W/kg – with discharge rates of up to 10C (without cooling) or 15C with active cooling. In January, the company named drones, eVTOLs, light electric vehicles and high-performance electric vehicles as areas of application.
Before the end of 2024, Amprius said it had delivered pre-series samples with 10Ah to six customers to enable tests under real-life conditions. Amprius is also about to launch another cell – the SiMaxx – on the market: A-samples of these cells are currently available to the United States Advanced Battery Consortium (USABC). USABC is a subsidiary of the United States Council for Automotive Research (USCAR), a joint technology company of Ford, General Motors and Stellantis. USABC invested three million dollars in Amprius three years ago – the collaboration between the two partners is correspondingly close. Amprius’ own internal tests of the A-samples indicate a specific energy of 360 Wh/kg and a power density of 1,200 W/kg.
Dr Ionel Stefan, CTO of Amprius Technologies, described the now even higher performing SiCore cell in January as a significant technical breakthrough for the industry, “achieving a level of power-to-energy ratio that we believe has not been seen at such high-energy density.” By optimising the silicon anode composition without compromising the cell’s other performance metrics, his team has redefined the trade-off between power and energy. ‘This cell is not just about power, but also about creating new power opportunities for high-demand applications.’
Amprius is headquartered in Fremont, California, and has a research and development laboratory and a first production facility to manufacture silicon anodes and cells.
