<div id="readability-page-1">Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) has deployed the world’s first sodium-ion batteries in passenger cars, as it aims to stay ahead in China’s fiercely competitive electric vehicle (EV) market amid price volatility in traditional lithium-ion batteries. The company’s new Naxtra battery will be installed in China Changan Automobile Group EVs this week for winter testing in the chilly Inner Mongolia autonomous region in the country’s north. “The breakthroughs in sodium-ion technology bring greater resilience, a wider operating temperature range and more sustainable growth to electrification,” said Gao Huan, chief technology officer at the battery giant, at a press conference on Thursday. Under an agreement between the two companies, Changan will start using CATL’s sodium-ion batteries across its entire brand portfolio – comprising the Avatr, Deepal, Qiyuan and Uni models. Changan’s chief brand officer Tan Benhong said the firm would accelerate the application of sodium-ion batteries, as the state-managed carmaker echoed China’s national strategy of bringing safe, economical and durable EVs to more people.  The carmaker would also test its Avatr 12 model in Antarctica within the next 18 months, making it the first EV sedan to drive on the frozen continent, Tan said. Compared with the lithium-ion batteries that currently predominate as EV power sources, the sodium alternative is said to be more resilient in cold weather and less flammable, an issue that has come to the fore following a number of EV fires that resulted in fatalities. In addition, sodium is easier to access as the core material – sodium carbonate – is widely present in rocks and seawater. Lithium carbonate, essential for lithium-ion battery production, is harder to find in China. CATL’s Naxtra battery is expected to have an impact on the cutthroat competition among Chinese EV makers, especially as industry sales growth slowed in January. Lithium carbonate prices have varied sharply in recent years, peaking near 600,000 yuan (US$86,456) per tonne in late 2022 and then dropping to below 100,000 yuan in 2025. Driven by the phase-out of China’s EV purchase subsidies, its price surged above 160,000 yuan in January. However, lithium-ion batteries enjoyed better economies of scale in manufacturing, whereas sodium-ion batteries were still in their early stage of commercialisation, said Nomura analyst Ethan Zhang.  CATL said the new battery technology would lead to a new ecosystem for China’s EV industry, where sodium-ion and lithium-ion batteries addressed diverse customer needs. According to the company, the Naxtra battery can maintain stable energy output at temperatures as low as minus 50 degrees Celsius. In earlier tests, the Changan passenger model achieved a pure-electric driving range of over 400 km and delivered nearly three times the discharge power of a conventional lithium-ion battery model with the same capacity when operating at minus 30 degrees Celsius. CATL began research and development on sodium-ion batteries in 2015 and introduced the first generation of the new product in 2021, although it has not been used for EVs until now. The firm invested around 10 billion yuan in the technology before it became commercially viable, according to Gao.</div>

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<p>Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) has launched the world's first sodium-ion batteries for passenger cars, aiming to enhance its position in China's competitive electric vehicle (EV) market. The new Naxtra battery will be tested in Changan Automobile Group EVs in Inner Mongolia. This technology offers greater resilience, a wider temperature range, and sustainability. Changan plans to implement these batteries across its brand portfolio, including testing an EV in Antarctica. Sodium-ion batteries are seen as a safer, more accessible alternative to lithium-ion batteries, potentially reshaping the EV landscape in China.</p>

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Why CATL’s sodium-ion breakthrough could be a game changer for China’s EV market