MG will start equipping its electric car models with solid-state batteries within the next 12 months. The news - reported by Autocar - comes straight from a senior SAIC group executive present at the Chengdu Motor Show.
It was there that Yu Jingmin, executive vice-president of passenger vehicle operations, revealed that new solid-state battery technology developed by the company and intended to be shared with other SAIC brands will soon be launched in a MG model.
Surprising the competition
We don't yet know exactly which MG will be the first to feature this type of battery, but the company's top management indicates that it will debut in the second quarter of 2025, with arrival at dealerships by the end of the same year.
MG4 XPower
The ambitious move is more than 12 months ahead of the brand's previous timeline for the introduction of solid-state batteries in its production models.
It also puts MG ahead of virtually all competitors in the planned adoption of solid-state battery technology in production models.
Early speculation
No details have yet been revealed, but early indications are that it will have the same 5% liquid mass proportion as the battery used by IM Motor, as well as having an 800V electrical architecture. It would therefore be more correct to speak of a semi-solid state, as Nio does.
IM L6
In fact, IM Motor - another Chinese brand in SAIC's orbit - has already presented its new L6 saloon with first-generation solid-state batteries, developed in collaboration between SAIC and Chinese battery specialist Jiangsu Qingtao.
IM's 'Lightyear' battery offers more than twice the energy density of the existing lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery (368W per kg). With a capacity of 133 kWh, it gives the L6 saloon a claimed range of 673 miles in the Chinese CLTC cycle and the ability to recharge 250 miles in 12 minutes.
MG's plans:
Gallery: MG4 Electric XPOWER (2023)
Source: Autocar