Polestar puts money on StoreDot’s ultra-fast charging battery technology

Polestar has become the latest electric vehicle manufacturer to place a bet on the extreme fast charging battery technology being developed by StoreDot, with the announcment of a “strategic deal” with the Israel-based company.

StoreDot is pioneering the development of silicon-dominant advanced EV battery technology and has set a target to produce batteries capable of charging up to 160km of range in just five minutes by 2024.

Polestar says its deal with StoreDot, which marks its first financial investment as a company, includes collaborating on the adaption and application of this technology to proof-of-concept Polestar electric vehicles.

The Sweden-based electric performance car maker has followed parent brand Volvo in backing StoreDot, and a growing list of fellow EV market players, including Daimler, VinFast, Ola Electric, BP Ventures, Samsung, TDK, and EVE Energy.

Polestar said this week that StoreDot’s advanced battery technology aligned with its own strategy of leveraging industry collaboration on innovation to drive the shift to electric mobility.

And the EV maker said that if its current pilot projects with StoreDot proved successful, the technology could be rolled out in Polestar cars as early as 2026.

“Polestar can help shape the development of new battery technology for the automotive industry and provide invaluable insights from the perspective of a brand focused on performance and sustainability,” said CEO Thomas Ingenlath.

“Charging and range anxiety are common concerns holding owners of combustion engine cars back from making the switch to EVs.

“StoreDot’s advanced battery technology potentially provides real solutions to these obstacles,” Inhenlath said.

StoreDot CEO Dr Doron Myersdorf praised Polestar as an ambitious and innovative brand that was already “proving to be pivotal” in the mass adoption of electric vehicles.

“We know that our technologies have huge potential to eradicate charging and range anxieties for future Polestar owners,” Myersdorf said.

StoreDot confirmed in in March that it was on track to deliver mass production of batteries capable of charging 160 kilometres (100 miles) of range in 5 minutes – or “100in%” – by 2024.

Ultimately, however, the company is aiming to deliver a battery with a 2-minute charge time for 100 miles (160 kilometres) by 2032.

Polestar, meanwhile, has plans to launch one new electric vehicle a year, starting this year with the Polestar 3 – the company’s first electric performance SUV – to add to the existing all-electric Polestar 2.