Bengaluru-based battery maker Exponent Energy and Altigreen Propulsion Labs have announced a partnership with the former supplying batteries to the commercial electric three-wheeler maker. The partnership has spawned a new commercial three-wheeler from Altigreen with rapid charging capability, which promises 0-100 per cent battery state of charge in just 15 minutes. Exponent says the rapid charging is achieved by delivering 600A of current to the 8.19 kWh e-pack, which charges 15 times faster than the industry standard. Exponent's LPF battery ensures individual battery cell impedance and thermals to maximise safety.
Speaking to carandbike about the new battery pack, Amitabh Saran, Founder and CEO - Altigreen, said, "From an OEM perspective, I think it opens up a completely new dimension to this entire problem of last mile mobility, plus for certain use cases it is probably the primary driver."
The Altigreen electric three-wheeler with the Exponent battery pack promises a real-world range of 80-85 km on a single charge. The 15-minute charging interval allows for a faster turnaround time, especially in the last-mile delivery sector. The battery also comes with a 3,000 cycle life warranty, setting a new industry standard. Deliveries for the new electric three-wheeler will begin in October this year with Altigreen planning about three new versions of its electric vehicles for different use cases.
The 8.19 kWh developed by Exponent comes with a 3,000 cycle charge warranty, an industry first
Exponent will also be working on creating its own charging network that will enable charging the batteries at full potential. "We are going to be setting 100 [charging outlets] ourselves through right now," said, Arun Vinayak, Co-founder & CEO, Exponent Energy. He further explained that the first set of outlets will be located in Bengaluru, home to both players, before stepping into other cities pan India. The 100 e-pumps will be set-up in Bengaluru by the first quarter 2023.
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Exponent and Altigreen co-developed the batteries over a period of six months to get the right integration between the vehicle and battery in order. Explaining the necessity, Vinayak said, "We talked about a much tighter, much more integrated approach to make sure that at the vehicle level, we have good enough information about the battery pack so that we can take all those safety precautions on our side. Obviously, the battery pack needs to know a lot about how much current is being wanted? And what is my SOC? And what is my temperature? Can I keep this or not, because a lot of integration needs to be done at the latest control unit level, overall management of energy and power. So, I think it's taken up to six months of integration and testing."
Altigreen currently has a production capacity of about 40,000 vehicles a year but the company is scouting for a new facility that will amplify its production numbers. It also plans to enter about 40 new cities with its electric three-wheelers by the end of the financial year, confirmed Saran.
