Chinese automotive giant SAIC Motor intends to equip its self-developed solid-state batteries on electric vehicle models of its EV unit IM Motors, also known as Zhiji Motors, by 2027.

SAIC will complete the construction of its first production line for solid-state batteries next year and kick off mass production the following year, the Shanghai-based company said in a new strategic plan released on May 24.

SAIC’s solid-state batteries will have an energy density of over 400 watt-hours per kilogram and a capacity of more than 75 ampere-hours. They will not be ignited or explode if pierced by steel needles or in temperatures of over 200 degrees Celsius. Moreover, their production cost is about 40 percent cheaper than that of non-solid-state batteries.

The semi-solid-state batteries used on IM Motors’ L6 that will be delivered from October have an energy density of over 300 Wh per kg and a corresponding mileage of more than 1,000 kilometers.

Z-One Galaxy Full-Stack Solution, the smart vehicle solution developed by the firm’s software arm SAIC Z-ONE, will be comprehensively equipped on cars from next year, according to SAIC’s plan. Z-One Galaxy Full-Stack Solution will cut vehicles’ lower-voltage power consumption, reduce the number of controllers by half and that of circuit groups by 30 percent, and support Level-3 mass-produced autonomous driving.

SAIC is undergoing an electrification transition. Last year, the firm sold 1.12 million new energy vehicles, up 4.6 percent from the previous year. SAIC invested nearly CNY150 billion (USD20.7 billion) in research and development in the past decade, registering over 26,000 patents, according to the carmaker’s Vice President and Chief Engineer Zu Sijie.