Honda demonstrates solid-state battery production line

Honda has just shown its production line for solid-state batteries for the first time. The Japanese manufacturer has been working on batteries with ceramic electrolytes for some time, but now it is revealing interesting details about the progress it has made.

Honda has decided to work independently on this technology and develop its own solid-state batteries in-house. They will be ready within a few years and will double the range of the next generation of electric cars, expected - according to official statements - in the second half of the decade.

Companies working on solid-state batteries:

Stellantis installs solid-state batteries in the Dodge Charger

Mercedes announces its solid-state batteries

Work on technology and production processes

The company has made it known that the solid-state study is not only being carried out to assess the benefits of this type of battery, but is also aimed at mass production, which should be achieved by 2030.

That is why the first production line has been started, which is located at Honda's R&D centre in Sakura City, Japan. The purpose of the line is twofold: to validate the performance of the solid electrolyte cells and to refine the production processes so that they can then be replicated on a large scale.

Honda Research and Development Centre located in Sakura City

A miniature Gigafactory

The pilot plant for the production of solid-state batteries presented by Honda consists of several departments covering an area of more than 27,000 square metres. The facility houses the actual line, as well as the area for weighing and mixing cathode and anode materials and the area for making the separator and coatings.

The existing line, which is already in operation, will be completed next spring. In early 2025, however, Honda will begin construction of a second line that can utilise more efficient production processes.

Honda says that this new plant within Japan's R&D centre will play a key role in achieving the company's 2050 carbon-neutrality targets and will accelerate the path to an all-electric range of vehicles (electric and fuel cell), which is expected to be completed in 2040.