VKTR and Gotion Indonesia Develop Electric Vehicle Battery
- M Yudha P / VIVA.co.id
VIVA – PT VKTR Teknologi Mobilitas (VKTR) and PT Gotion Indonesia Materials will collaborate in developing significant components in the electric vehicle battery industry.
As information, PT Gotion Indonesia Materials is a subsidiary of Gotion High-Tech Co., Ltd, which is one of the largest battery companies in China and India. In line with what VKTR is working on, namely the development of electric vehicle batteries in Indonesia.
“This collaboration will focus on developing battery packs which are one of the important components in the anatomy of electric vehicle batteries,” President Director of VKTR, Gilarsi W. Setijono stated after signing an MoU related to the cooperation in the Kuningan area, Jakarta on Friday.
The President Director plans to produce battery-based electric vehicles, with battery requirements projected to 2027. The hope is that Gotion High-Tech Co., Ltd. will help provide lithium battery packs, for new electric vehicles and retrofitted electric vehicles that will be produced by VKTR.
Dirut PT VKTR Gilarsi W Setijono bersama pihak PENS memamerkan sepeda motor yang diretrofit menjadi motor listrik.
- VIVA/Nur Faishal (Surabaya)
According to Gilarsi, designing the right battery pack is crucial to meet VKTR's expectations as a customer especially in terms of range, cost, safety, durability, and driving experience. However, integrating this technology into vehicles is a challenge, as both cost and performance are at stake.
"Both newcomers and old players in the automotive sector will face the challenge of balancing these factors, especially as none of the OEMs yet have experience producing battery packs to guide their decision-making," Gilarsi W. Setijono remarked.
Operating an electric vehicle requires enormous power thousands of times more powerful than a smartphone. That is why electric cars require tens of battery cells up to thousands, "The composition of EV batteries may vary slightly depending on the type of electric vehicle, but generally EV batteries consist of cells, modules, and packs," added Gilarsi.
Gilarsi further explained that to safely and efficiently manage the countless battery cells installed in an EV, the cells are installed in modules and packs. As simply, cells, modules, and packs are battery units that are assembled.
"A group of cells forms a module and a group of modules forms a pack. After that, in an electric vehicle, one form of battery is installed, one pack," he said.
Meanwhile, Executive Director of PT Gotion Indonesia Materials, Shen Wenbo said that his party is optimistic that this strategic cooperation can run smoothly, and be able to advance the electric vehicle battery industry in Indonesia.
As one of the largest battery company players number three in China and number one in India, it is confident that it will be able to produce reliable battery modules and packs according to specifications and expectations, "We hope to take part in efforts to accelerate the electric vehicle industry in Indonesia," he said.
