Recently, there have been new developments in the global electric aviation field: many Nordic countries plan to jointly develop electric aircraft, and good news has come from the domestic electric aviation industry chain... Electric aviation is accelerating towards the era of large-scale application.
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Five Nordic countries join forces to develop electric aircraft
According to Xinhua News Agency, the Swedish government recently announced that the transport ministers of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden signed a statement during the Nordic Transport Ministers' Meeting held in Gothenburg, Sweden, which will strengthen cooperation among Nordic countries and promote the development of commercial electric aviation.
On the supply side , the Nordic region has become an "ideal testing ground" for electric aviation due to its unique geographical features and support for carbon neutrality in the transportation industry.
According to data, the EU certified electric aircraft for the first time in 2020, and in November 2022, the transport ministers of Nordic countries pledged at a relevant meeting that they plan to establish zero fossil fuel routes in Northern Europe by 2030. This commitment includes promoting the development of zero fossil fuel aviation worldwide. At present, short-haul routes of less than 400 kilometers are the initial target market for the development of Nordic electric aircraft.
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The development trend of electric aircraft in my country is emerging
In fact, it is not only Northern Europe that is increasing its investment in electric aviation. China's electric aviation is also on the eve of mass production and application. So far, cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Zhengzhou, Nanjing, Hangzhou, and Qingdao have successively introduced specific support policies and action plans for the low-altitude economy to help the development of related companies.
As the main force in the field of electric aviation, my country's eVTOL (electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle)/electric flying cars and other electric aircraft have developed by leaps and bounds in the past two years.
For example, the eVTOL leader EHang Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd. released its second quarter 2024 performance report showing that its revenue for the period was 102 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 919%, a nine-fold increase, and a month-on-month increase of 65%, setting a record high for quarterly revenue. In terms of profit, it turned losses into profits (after adjustment).
According to it, since Q4 last year, it has received more than 1,100 bulk pre-order orders in the Chinese market.
It is understood that three types of certificates are required for aircraft from production to commercial operation, namely the Type Certificate (TC), Airworthiness Certificate (AC), and Production Certificate (PC). On April 7 this year, the Civil Aviation Administration of China issued a production license for EHang Intelligent's EH216-S unmanned manned aircraft system, making this product the world's first eVTOL product with all three certificates.
It is worth mentioning that Taiyuan Xishan Culture and Tourism alone, in addition to issuing a purchase order for 50 EH216-S to Ehang Intelligent, will purchase another 450 aircraft in the next two years to create a local "low-altitude + tourism" demonstration project.
The application of Ehang's intelligent eVTOL products is just a microcosm of the rapid development of low-altitude economy and electric aviation. In terms of the market, data released by the Civil Aviation Administration of China shows that by 2035, the market size of China's low-altitude economy is expected to reach 3.5 trillion yuan.
In the view of Battery China, my country's electric aviation industry has broad prospects and presents the following development trends:
First, in terms of market expansion strategy, evidence collection at home and abroad is being carried out simultaneously.
This is the airworthiness certification strategy of aircraft company Fengfei Aviation. According to information, its manned eVTOL aircraft is currently undergoing airworthiness certification at the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), and its V2000CG unmanned aerial vehicle has obtained the TC certificate in China.
Its dual-line certification strategy also reflects, to a certain extent, a "going global" strategy that my country's eVTOL companies may adopt in the future. This method may enable them to enter the global electric aviation industry chain more quickly and participate in the global electric aviation process.
Second, my country's continuously innovative and upgraded battery technology will help the large-scale application of electric aircraft.
Yang Ning, director of EHang Intelligent, once said, "Using batteries with higher energy density and faster charging time to improve operational efficiency and reduce operating costs is a prerequisite for accelerating the popularization and application of eVTOL products."
It is worth mentioning that my country has leading new energy battery technology and rich industrialization experience, which will help the commercial application of aircraft by electric aviation downstream companies in my country and even the world.
Third, the number of aircraft with new configurations of eVTOL/flying cars will gradually increase, which will also place higher requirements on aviation batteries.
Due to different application scenarios, electric aircraft currently have unmanned and manned models; 5-seater and 8-seater models; and are driven by different types of propellers. With the promotion of innovative technologies, more new aircraft configurations are expected to be launched in the future, which will also require the corresponding aviation batteries to have different performance advantages, and battery technology upgrades face challenges.
In addition, the popularization of electric aircraft is inseparable from infrastructure construction. At present, many places in my country have issued development plans for the electric aviation industry, which have put forward clear action plans for infrastructure such as route design, aircraft take-off and landing points, and aircraft charging facilities, which will also provide convenience for my country's electric aviation industry to enter public life as soon as possible in the future.
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Focus on the commanding heights of new energy and new markets, and increase investment in aviation battery layout
Looking around the world, apart from China, other regions in the world, such as Europe, the United States, Japan, and South Korea, are all actively laying out the eVTOL track. The recent increase in Northern Europe's layout in the field of electric aircraft also confirms the high prosperity expectations of overseas regions for the electric aviation industry.
Aviation electrification is considered to be another important emerging application market for new energy batteries after the large-scale application of automobile/ship propulsion and energy storage markets. As the core component of electric aircraft, the implementation of aviation battery technology is the commanding height of this market, and therefore has attracted much attention from the industry.
In terms of technology , in March this year, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and other four departments jointly issued the "Implementation Plan for Innovation and Application of General Aviation Equipment (2024-2030)", which proposed: promoting the mass production of 400Wh/kg-level aviation lithium battery products and realizing the application verification of 500Wh/kg-level aviation lithium battery products. This also pointed out the direction and goal for the development of China's aviation batteries.
In response to the market demand for eVTOL batteries, battery companies such as CATL, EVE Energy, Juwan Technology, Guoxuan High-tech, Zhengli New Energy, Farasis Energy, Lishen Battery, and BYD Battery have all laid out related product research and development and commercialization.
CATL revealed in June this year that the 4-ton electric aircraft will be equipped with its condensed matter battery, which has a single cell energy density of up to 500Wh/kg and can be fully charged within minutes; and it is "actively investing" and accelerating the research and development of the 8-ton class.
The eVTOL battery launched by EVE Energy in June has an energy density of up to 320Wh/kg, supports fast charging to 80% in 10 minutes, and meets the high output capacity of 10C and more than 7,000 cycles in the entire life cycle. Currently, EVE Energy has delivered A samples to overseas aviation partners.
In June, BYD Battery revealed that for the eVTOL field, it launched the 2170-48B battery cell, 2170-55B battery cell, and the large cylindrical full-tab platform 4680 battery cell to meet the high-energy needs in different application scenarios such as passenger transport, cargo transport, police security, etc.
In April, Juwan Technology Research released its ultra-fast/very-fast charging battery system for eVTOL aircraft and signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Ehang Intelligent. The battery system uses ternary lithium batteries, and the system energy density is 25% higher than the current eVTOL batteries; charging from 30% to 80% only takes 5 to 10 minutes.
In the same month, Farasis Energy stated that it had obtained a designation from Shanghai Time Technology Co., Ltd. in the field of manned flight, and had established in-depth cooperation with leading overseas companies in the eVTOL market and delivered products.
Lishen Battery has achieved the development or application of a number of high-energy density batteries such as 310Wh/kg-360Wh/kg, mainly targeting the fields of ultra-long-range electric vehicles, consumer drones, eVTOL/flying cars, etc.
According to information, Guoxuan High-tech and Ehang Intelligent signed a strategic cooperation agreement in December last year to jointly develop power cell solutions for eVTOL products.
Zhengli New Energy has launched a "three highs and one fast" aviation battery solution. The energy density of its aviation battery reaches 320Wh/kg; it can still achieve a high-rate discharge performance of more than 12C at 20% SOC; it can be charged to 80% in 15 minutes; and it meets aviation safety standards.
As Andreas Carlsson, Sweden’s Minister of Infrastructure and Housing, said, “Electric aviation is very important for the transformation of the aviation industry. Not only does it reduce carbon emissions, but it can also, together with other sustainable fuels, accelerate the transition of the aviation industry to zero fossil fuels.”
In terms of the market, at present, there are related companies in overseas regions such as the United States, Europe, Japan, and South Korea, and some companies have received billions of dollars in financing, and the speed of technology verification is also accelerating. The commercialization schedule of my country's leading electric aviation companies has been announced, and Chinese lithium battery industry chain companies with technological advantages have also entered the market. Which battery companies will enter the top 10 of aviation batteries, the industry is waiting to see.