NAIMA – New Na-Ion cells to accelerate the European Energy Transition
The European project NAIMA aims to develop a new generation of high-competitive and safe Na-Ion cells for the current and future energy storage technologies, supported by the key actors of the European Battery value chain.
The project
The European Union is transitioning to a secure, sustainable and competitive energy system based on renewable sources. The non-dispatchable renewable generation requires a higher flexibility in the energy system, where the weight of much more decentralised installations grows day-to-day. In the whole of these business scenarios, without any exception, the role of energy storage technologies is crucial.
To find an alternative to Li-based technologies, which are nowadays primarily controlled by Asian industry, the NAIMA project will demonstrate a new generation of high-competitive and safety Na-Ion cells. The Na-Ion disruptive technology is already supported by a solid European Battery value chain (industry partners of the consortium) through their solid commitment of substantial investments in the manufacturing of all components of a battery, preserving the ownership and industry strength around European countries.
Within the framework of the project, 6 Na-Ion batteries (SIB) prototypes will be tested in 3 multi-scale Business Scenarios to provide solid evidences about the competitiveness of the technology in 3 real environments (renewable generation – EDF/France, industry – GESTAMP/Spain and private household-GOLDLINE/Bulgaria).
EnergyVille/VITO is heavily involved in this project providing the battery management system, advanced modelling with a focus on ageing and fast charging processes and life cycle analysis.
The Goals
The project has identified 8 specific goals:
- To develop and test 2 enhanced configurations of Na-Ion cells conceived by the perfect combination of novel advanced materials and chemistries, to demonstrate the fulfilment of KPIs directly linked with the technological competitiveness of the technology.
- To apply a set of cost reduction strategies to pave the way towards a high competitiveness with the aim of reaching a cost target of 0.05€/kWh0.05€/kWh/cycle and 0.04€/kWh/cycle by the end of the project
- To design, assembly and test 6 Sodium-Ion batteries (SIB) prototypes as a full system, in 3 different Business Scenarios where the role of storage technologies is considered vital for the end-users.
- To introduce novel strategies such as eco-design, circular economy, high recycling and 2nd life applications to guarantee the development of a sustainable SIB and to demonstrate its environmental, social and economic impact by the development of a full low cost cell design and high power cell design for industry application.
- To contribute the creation of a new EU battery industry by the commitment of investments in manufacturing plants, especially in the component production and cell assembly stages of the SIB value chain, reducing the EU dependence of the raw materials for Li-Ion batteries.
- To create a detailed technology development roadmap to establish the product development strategies required to achieve the target KPIs by 2030:
- 200 Wh/kg (gravimetric energy density.
- 1,500 W/kg (gravimetric specific power).
- 750 Wh/l (Volumetric energy density).
- 10,000 cycles and >50% recycling rate.
- To create an industry upscaling roadmap enabling the strengthening of the European Battery Industry by addressing the whole value chain.
- To establish the main pillars of a precise refined feasibility study and business plan as a strategic tool to get a smooth market penetration and proper orientation of the future products and services in 2023.
The consortium
NAIMA bring together a strong and complementary consortium, including 15 partners from 8 European countries (France, Germany, Sweden, Bulgaria, Spain, Netherlands, Slovenia and Belgium): 5 being R&D organisation (CNRS, CEA, NIC, IHE, EnergyVille/VITO), 6 SMEs (TIAMAT, BIOKOL, IEIT, GOLDLINE, ACC, ZABALA IC) and 4 large companies (EDF, GESTAMP, SOLVAY, UMICORE). The well-balanced and interdisciplinary profiles of the partners covers satisfactorily the entire battery value chain along with the diverse fundamentals R&D fields required in the project. Moreover, an international advisory board will be involved in the development of the project, so that the use cases developed become real business models.
