BYD licenses LFP blade battery cells to BorgWarner, a supplier for Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis. BorgWarner is a tier-1 automotive supplier based in the United States.
BorgWarner signed a strategic agreement with FinDreams Battery, a subsidiary of BYD Company Limited. Under the agreement, the US-based automotive supplier gets the rights to manufacture lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery packs for commercial vehicles, using BYD’s blade cells.
BYD has agreed to give BorgWarner the right to localize production of LFP battery packs with blade cells in Europe, the Americas, and select regions in the Asia Pacific for eight years. BorWarner’s LFP battery packs with BYD blade cells will be sold specifically for commercial vehicles in class 3 or above.
“The lithium iron phosphate battery chemistry is an exciting technology that is becoming increasingly important globally due to its cost competitiveness. We have seen increased demand from our customers for packs with LFP cells.
“We believe FinDreams Battery is right for BorgWarner in this area, with its 20-plus years of experience and success in LFP batteries for the mobility sector across China and Europe. We are excited to work together to develop cutting-edge cell and battery pack technology to further electrify this market segment,” said Frédéric Lissalde, President and CEO of BorgWarner.
In 2021, rumors spread that Tesla would use BYD’s bad battery cell for its $25,000 next-generation car. According to Chinese sources at the time, Tesla already entered the C-sample test phase using vehicles with blade batteries installed.
In 2023, a video from China compared a Tesla Model 3’s 2170 battery pack with the BDY Han’s Blade battery. The comparison was interesting but would have been better if the BYD Blade Battery was compared with Tesla’s 4680 battery cell.
At the beginning of 2024, news broke that BYD was reportedly planning to phase out pouch-type batteries. BYD was allegedly planning to switch to prismatic batteries called “Short Blade,” which are similar to BYD’s Blade battery, but shorter in length.
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