South Korea battery cathode materials manufacturer EcoPro BM is expanding the applications of its nickel cobalt aluminum (NCA) cathode material beyond power tools and vacuum cleaners to include electric vehicles (EVs) and energy storage systems (ESS).

The company’s sales of NCA cathode material reached approximately 300,000 tons as of the first half of this year, enough to supply around 3 million EVs.

From 2008, when the company started commercial production of NCA cathode material, until 2021, EcoPro sold around 100,000 tons for power tools and electric bicycles. Sales have climbed to around 200,000 since 2022, driven by increasing demand for EVs and ESS batteries. Its sales of ESS cathode materials have increased sixfold compared to 2023.

NCA cathode materials were the first cathode material EcoPro developed after launching its secondary battery business in 2004. While NCA materials offer 20-30% higher energy density than nickel cobalt manganese (NCM) materials, the more complex manufacturing process has posed a high technological barrier.

EcoPro expects NCA to become mainstream “when the mid- to large-sized secondary battery market for electric vehicles and energy storage devices arrives in the near future.”

Source: EcoPro BM