South Korea’s LGES and China’s Catl will both supply the Ampere division of French OEM Renault with lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries alongside its existing nickel manganese cobalt (NCM) technology.
And the firm says it will work with both firms to develop battery supply chains “on the European continent”, in further sign that Europe’s automotive industry thinks that EU authorities will remain comfortable with Chinese OEMs and battery players having an on-the-ground industrial presence. Catl is expected to supply LFP batteries from is plant in Hungary, while LGES will provide both LFP and NCM cells from Poland.
“Less energy-intensive than NCM, it is perfectly suited to certain applications, such as small and midsize cars,” says Ampere of LFP. “Less expensive, it is an important part of the economic equation for affordable electric vehicles and their democratisation in Europe.”
The French OEM will also rely on another Chinese firm, AESC, for NCM batteries from a facility in its own Douai hub in Fence, as well as from French start-up firm Verkor (in which Renault is an investor) from its Dunkerque gigafactory.
Ampere will also partner with LGES on the development of cell-to-pack (CTP) technology, in what it calls “a world’s first for pouch-type batteries”. CTP technology removes the battery modules and integrates the cell directly into the case. It aims to improve the range of vehicles by integrating more cells, and therefore more energy, in a given space.
CTP technology also promises to help reduce battery costs. And the integration of both LFP and CTP technologies are key planks of Ampere’s ambition to reduce the cost of batteries in its vehicles by c.20pc from the beginning of 2026.
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“In a fast-changing and competitive environment, our battery strategy is proof of the efficiency of Ampere’s open and horizontal approach with best-in-class partners, ensuring smart capital allocation, flexibility and rapid execution. This plan is in line with Ampere roadmap to reduce costs by 40pc before the next generation of vehicles”, says Josep Maria Recasens, Ampere COO.
“The work we have done with LG Energy Solution has enabled us to localise the entire value chain around LFP technology in Europe, and significantly increase its competitiveness, including with cell-to-pack. Innovation in batteries is ongoing, and we are working far upstream — in particular with our innovation battery cell laboratory to open in Lardy in 2025 — to engage our partners early on with us on the major transformations to come”, says Philippe Brunet, the firm’s SVP powertrain and EV engineering.
