Sila’s High-Efficiency Battery Anode To Power Electric Mercedes-Benz SUV

Sila, an upstart battery materials company that is led by an early engineer ofTesla, will supply Mercedes-Benz with a high-efficiency battery anode in a new electric SUV.

The first automotive customer for Sila's material will be the Mercedes-Benz G-Class SUVs, which will be powered by batteries by about 2025. Mercedes said the new anode offers up to 40% improvement in energy density and improved driving range per charge. The companies did not give financial details of the agreement.

Mercedes-Benz's chief technology officer said thatila has come a long way since they established their partnership.

Sila this month said it was building a plant in Washington to make battery anodes. The first phase of the factory will be able to produce enough anode materials for half a million electric vehicles. The plant may be able to produce enough material for batteries in millions of electric vehicles over time.

A battery's four main elements are anodes, cathode, separator material and electrolyte. The active material is coated with a substance that allows electric current to flow through the external circuit and also allows the absorption of lithium ion from the cathode.

Sila said that they are focused on delivering materials that are cost-efficient and capable of delivering on the promise of electric vehicles.

In 2004, Berdichevsky was hired as the principal battery engineer for the first attempt at an electric car by the company. He was more interested in finding new ways to make the batteries cheaper and more efficient when it came out. Over the past decade, he has raised $925 million for Sila to develop its technology and fund the first phase of the Washington plant.