Sports car manufacturer Porsche is setting up a joint venture with Customcells to produce high-performance batteries that will significantly reduce charging times in electric vehicles.
The partnership with Customcells, a company based in southern Germany specializing in lithium-ion battery cells, aims to produce car batteries with higher energy density than prototypes used in Porsche's current electric cars, the two companies said in a joint news statement.
European carmakers are pushing to reduce their dependence on Asia for batteries as they roll out all-electric models to meet stricter emissions targets in the European Union.
In addition to cutting charging time, improving energy density will mean reducing the amount of raw materials needed in batteries to achieve the same range. It will also cut battery production costs, making electric cars more affordable.
Porsche said it will invest tens of millions of dollars into the joint venture in which it will hold an 80% stake.
The production facility aims to have a capacity of 100 kilowatt hours, which will translate into about enough batteries for 1,000 cars a year.
Porsche Chief Executive Officer Oliver Blume said in April that the company wanted to speed up its e-mobility drive with plans for a German factory in Tuebingen to manufacture battery cells.
Porsche's parent company, Volkswagen AG, has said it plans to build half a dozen battery cell plants across Europe and expand infrastructure for charging electric vehicles globally.
