Geely will begin testing a new solid-state battery across its huge portfolio of brands next year, raising hopes that the long-awaited breakthrough in energy tech will go into production vehicles in the near future.

Solid-state units promise huge advances in just about every facet of battery operation. EVs that use them are predicted to travel huge distances on a single charge, retain their capacity after years of use, work well in a wide range of temperatures, charge markedly faster, deliver significant weight savings… the list goes on.

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Geely says its range of solid-state packs will feature energy densities of up to 500Wh/kg – about double what the brand’s current Golden Brick batteries can manage – and vehicles equipped with them will be able to travel up to 1000km between charges. A lifespan of up to a million kilometres has also been claimed.

After spending years developing the SSBs, the manufacturer is ready to pilot them across its portfolio with a view to trialling production in 2027. Real-world validation started this year, but there has been no word on when mass production might begin, and the fact that testing is underway doesn’t necessarily mean the breakthrough will come to showroom floors soon after. 

Volvo, Smart, Zeekr, Proton, Polestar and Lotus are just some of the brands that could benefit from the huge leap forward that SSBs represent, but Geely is far from the only company working desperately to bring the new tech into production.

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BYD and CATL are committed to trialling the batteries next year. Chinese battery maker CALB also plans small-scale validation next year, and China’s Gotion High Tech wants to carry out road tests in the same timeframe. 

Toyota is also chasing the holy grail. In 2024, it claimed units capable of 10-minute recharges and 1200km of range weren’t far away, with an executive from the company’s Indian arm saying the tech would be introduced “in a couple of years”. While that obviously hasn’t panned out, last month it was reported that Toyota will test an SSB in Lexus’s new electric LFA project.