Stellantis invests in Tiamat, a French start-up specializing in sodium-ion batteries

Is sodium the future of electric batteries? The Stellantis group's venture capital fund has just announced its entry into the capital of Tiamat, a French start-up which focuses on sodium-ion battery chemistry. Stellantis is seeking to diversify its supply of electric batteries by focusing on innovative chemistries. However, those of Tiamat have the immense advantage of doing without lithium and cobalt. The company created in 2017 by researchers is a “spin-off” of the CNRS and the CEA (Atomic Energy and Alternative Energies Commission).

After years of research and development, Tiamat is now raising funds to build a factory in Hauts-de-France which will ultimately produce 5 GWh of battery cells per year. The total amount of the project is 500 million euros. But the company will start by building a first tranche of 0.7 GWh which will require an investment of 150 million euros. “A third of this amount will be made up of equity, a third of debts to banks and the BPI and a third of subsidies promised by France 2030 and Hauts-de-France,” explains Hervé Beuffe, the general director of Tiamat. The amount of Stellantis' investment has not been disclosed. But it will not allow him to become the company's largest shareholder, specifies the boss of the start-up.

Tiamat does not start from scratch. It has already installed the first generation cells in DIY devices designed by Leroy Merlin. Hervé Beuffe proudly shows the packaging of an electric screwdriver equipped with a cell manufactured in Amiens. “This is the first application of sodium-ion technology,” he explains.

Also readAt the Battery School, with future electric motor pros

Tiamat is not yet into vehicle batteries. Ultimately, Tiamat and Stellantis hope that sodium-ion batteries can replace LFP (lithium iron phosphate) for entry-level vehicles. The cost savings could make it possible to market more accessible small vehicles. But technically, these sodium batteries would have the disadvantage of providing less autonomy. “On the other hand, they would recharge faster than LFPs,” summarizes Pierre Maucaudière, the Battery System Senior Fellow, “Master Expert”, of Stellantis.

Tiamat plans to build the factory at the end of the year and start production at the end of 2025. The factory would reach full capacity in 2029. Tiamat is not the only company to believe in the future of the sodium battery -ion. Several Chinese companies claim that they are already running prototypes of batteries of this type without giving any indication of their competitiveness.

For its part, Stellantis has invested in the development of alternative technologies to current NMC (nickel manganese cobalt) and LFP chemistries for energy storage: solid-state batteries with Factorial Energy and lithium-sulfur chemistry with Lyten Inc. By 2030, the group plans to reach 100% of sales of battery electric vehicles (BEV) in Europe and 50% for passenger cars and light commercial vehicles in the United States. To achieve these objectives, Stellantis must secure battery capacity of around 400 GWh per year.