Electric vehicles still lag behind their gas-powered cousins because of the limited range, long charging times and high cost of their battery packs. However, there is a bright light ahead as Eos Energy unveils a 160 kWh zinc-air battery that could hit the market in 2013.
Eos Energy will first apply their zinc-air batteries to grid storage such as solar panel systems. However, it is only a matter of time before they expand to the automotive sector.
The zinc-air battery, which uses the much-cheaper zinc, can survive over 2,000 recharge cycles without degradation. It could be refilled like a gas tank, drastically reducing its charging time. It could provide a 70 kWh battery pack that can deliver around 300 miles of range per-charge at a cost just over $11,000.
The price tag may seem steep, but it becomes a great bargain when compared to the $30,000+ premium charged by Tesla Motors to upgrade from 40kWh to 85 kWh.
If this battery pushes through next year, it could end the range anxiety over electric cars.
[via gas2]
If the figures are correct, the battery cost would be about 1.8 cents per mile ($11,000 / 2000 charges * 300 miles) assuming it was fully discharged each time (which is not realistic, but provides a good baseline). Also, the battery would have a lot of resale value if the car was wrecked or retired for whatever reason since it can provide a max of 600,000 miles. So even though it may seem expensive, it’s not, as the gasoline to travel 600,000 miles at $3.50 a gallon in a car getting 30 MPG would be $70,000.