Sodium-Ion Batteries Could Spark 'New Oil Age,' Morgan Stanley Says—This US Auto Giant Has An 'Early Foothold'

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The rising demand for sodium-ion batteries is set to transform salt into a highly sought-after commodity, according to Morgan Stanley.

Analyst Jack Lu and his team, in a note to clients, forecast that sodium-ion batteries will account for 20% of the global battery deployment market by 2030 and 37% by 2035, up from a projected 2% next year, reported CNBC on Sunday.  Lu characterizes the emerging sodium-ion battery era as the 'New Oil Age'.

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The sodium-ion battery market is expected to reach 830 GWh by 2030 and 2.4 TWh by 2035, driven by costs that are 30%–40% lower than those of lithium iron phosphate batteries and better cold-weather performance, according to Lu.

The analyst anticipates new investments worth nearly $800 billion in this sector by 2035. He stated, "In an AI-driven, power-intensive world, sodium-ion batteries address the critical bottleneck where energy security meets AI."

Another Morgan Stanley analyst, Andrew Percoco, noted that sodium is widely available and inexpensive in the U.S. He mentioned that General MotorsCo. has an "early foothold" in the U.S. market through its partnership with Peak Energy to develop next-generation sodium-ion batteries.

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BYD, GM Push Sodium-Ion Tech

Morgan Stanley's note comes on the heels of General Motors' outlining its energy storage push with new battery chemistry, earlier this month. The company already has more than 250,000 GM EVs on the road that can support bidirectional charging, a key feature for vehicle-to-grid programs. The automaker is also expanding into stationary energy storage, developing sodium-ion batteries, and partnering with Redwood Materials to advance battery recycling and a circular supply chain.

According to Percoco, GM expects grid-scale energy storage deployments to begin after 2028 and plans to use its sodium-ion battery technology in defense and mobility applications.

The shift towards sodium-ion batteries is not a sudden one. Earlier this year, BYD Co. Ltd., a rival to Tesla Inc., unveiled its sodium-ion batteries, promising a lifespan of 10,000 cycles, significantly higher than the current 1,500 to 3,000 cycles.

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Photo courtesy: Jonathan Weiss via Shutterstock

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