Kyocera Plans to Address the Japanese Storage Market Using the 24M Approach to Low-capital, Cost-effective Battery Manufacturing

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — (BUSINESS WIRE) — June 21, 2019 — 24M announced today that long-time partner and investor, Kyocera, plans to install capacity to validate the novel 24M SemiSolid manufacturing platform. The facility, under construction in Osaka, Japan, will support pilot production of residential solar + storage systems in the Japanese market.

The 24M SemiSolid manufacturing platform delivers a significant structural bill of materials advantage and requires substantially less upfront capital. Using electrolyte as the processing solvent in a binderless system, the SemiSolid platform allows for production of electrodes 4-5 times thicker than a conventional process. The use of thick electrodes significantly reduces inactive materials content – copper, aluminum and separator – yielding substantial cost savings.

Moreover, using electrolyte as the processing solvent results in the elimination of numerous capital- and energy-intensive steps like drying, solvent recovery, calendaring and electrolyte filling. The elimination of these steps, and the reduction in plant footprint associated with the steps, yields a capital reduction of up to 50%. In conjunction with the thick-electrode-driven structural bill of materials advantage, the reduced capital cost structure contributes to industry-leading cost of goods.

“Kyocera considers the unique 24M SemiSolid approach the emerging standard for lithium-ion battery manufacturing,” said Masahiro Inagaki, Senior Executive Officer at Kyocera. “The ability to cost-effectively manufacture advanced lithium-ion batteries can enable Kyocera to expand residential sales throughout Japan.”

Kyocera is a leading supplier of solar power generating systems, industrial and automotive components, electronic devices, semiconductor packages, printers, copiers and mobile phones with annual sales of $14.6 billion.

“Kyocera is a long-time investor and supportive partner of 24M and we look forward to realizing our shared vision for cost-effective lithium-ion battery manufacturing,” said Naoki Ota, President and CTO of 24M. “Kyocera’s plans to use the 24M SemiSolid platform is validation that our low-capital, cost-effective approach is achievable at scale.”

About 24M
24M answers the world’s need for affordable energy storage by enabling a new, more cost-effective solution–SemiSolid lithium-ion technology. By re-inventing the design of the battery cell as well as the manufacturing method, 24M solves the critical, decades-old challenge associated with the world’s preferred energy storage chemistry: reducing its high cost while improving its performance. Founded and led by some of the battery industry’s foremost inventors, scientists and entrepreneurs, 24M is headquartered in Cambridge, Mass. For more information, please visit www.24-m.com.

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