GM to pioneer cheaper battery tech for electric trucks
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2025 Chevrolet Silverado EV. Photo courtesy of GM.
General Motors aims to deploy the industry's first lithium manganese-rich (LMR) batteries on its next-generation electric trucks and SUVs, tapping an alternative chemistry that it claims will provide more energy at a lower cost.
Why it matters: The biggest barriers that prevent truck customers from buying an EV are their limited driving range and high prices, GM says.
- The battery breakthrough means GM can offer electric trucks with a solid 400 miles of driving range at a lower price tag.
Where it stands: GM's current Chevrolet Silverado EV work truck, for example, has a standard range of 282 miles and starts at just over $57,000.
- Other versions with larger batteries offer well over 400 miles of driving range but cost between $70,000 and $98,000.
Driving the news: GM is expanding a partnership with battery company LG Energy Solution to commercialize LMR prismatic battery cells for use in its largest plug-in models.
- The companies' joint venture, Ultium Cells, plans to begin production in 2028.
Between the lines: Battery cathodes require materials like cobalt, nickel and manganese, with cobalt being the most expensive.
- LMR battery cells use less nickel and cobalt, and a higher proportion of more affordable manganese.
- The prismatic cells' flat shape makes it easy to stack into modules, delivering greater capacity and energy density than cylindrically shaped cells.
- The companies say the new battery unlocks 33% higher energy density than the best-performing lithium iron phosphate (LFP) based cells for about the same cost.
- LFP batteries, while cheaper than other lithium-ion batteries, sacrifice driving range.
What they're saying: "As we look to engineer the ideal battery for each vehicle in our diverse EV portfolio, LMR will complement our high-nickel and iron-phosphate solutions to expand customer choice in the truck and full-size SUV markets, advance American battery innovation, and create jobs well into the future," Kurt Kelty, GM's vice president of battery, propulsion, and sustainability, said in a statement.
