WOODINVILLE, Wash. — One in six new cars sold in Washington is electric, and experts expect that to increase this year.
As the demand for non-gas-powered vehicles increases, consumers are looking for better performance on the road.
Group14 Technologies said it’s developed a product that will allow EV owners to drive further and charge their batteries quicker.
The company makes silicon carbon material. It’s found in batteries for your electronics, in medical devices, and now electric vehicles.
Their product eliminates graphite, which is a key ingredient in batteries, and replaces it with silicon.
Scientists say the material leads to faster charging and longer-lasting batteries.
"Our customers that are using our material are able to get their batteries to store up to 50% more energy and are able to get charging in as little as 10 minutes,” Group14 co-founder Rick Costantino said. “And this is fundamentally a performance you cannot achieve with a graphite-based lithium-ion battery.”
Group14’s customers now include Porsche. The material will be in some of the car manufacturers' electric vehicles later this year.
"Now the heart of the car is going to be the battery, and that's why Porsche wanted to invest and work with Group14,” Costantino said. “For me that was a huge moment for the company to get really jazzed about our material."
Replacing graphite with silicon is a new technology, so it will take time to catch on. Costantino said right now it is more expensive, but it’s a cost-benefit decision.
The company researches, develops and manufactures from the Woodinville location, but as Group14 grows it needs more space. That took the company over the cascades.
Construction is underway on two more plants in Moses Lake. Group14 is investing $223 million into the projects and is supported by a $100 million grant from the Department of Energy.
“The historic investments Congress made over the past two years are helping solve the next-generation battery storage technology challenges right here in Washington,” U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell said. “These two cutting-edge companies [Group14 Technologies and California-based Sila Nanotechnologies] will not only use domestically sourced materials to make electric vehicles more affordable, they will be creating hundreds of high-paying jobs that will help transform Moses Lake into an epicenter of clean energy manufacturing.”
The Woodinville-based company has 250 employees but could soon grow to 500.
"We'll need to keep hiring hundreds of people to keep the sites running," Costantino said.
Meanwhile, the research from their hub continues, as they attempt to help make Washington state the hub for a revolutionary way to store energy.
"We're hoping to be a part of a bigger cause in making our planet cleaner, making it safer and making it sustainable moving into the future," Costantino said.
Group14 said its silicon battery will be used in new cars from several different companies within the next five years.