The recently released KG Mobility Torres EVX is attracting attention as it is equipped with China's BYD's LFP battery. Although concerns have been raised over doubts about Chinese products, KG Mobility maintains that it has secured reliability through sufficient verification.
This is not just a story about some car models. Recently, LFP batteries have begun to be adopted in earnest in car models where price competitiveness is important, such as Tesla Model Y and Kia Ray EV. Beyond popular brands, European premium brands are also showing growing interest in LFP batteries, and domestic battery manufacturers such as Samsung SDI, LG Energy Solution, and SK On are targeting the LFP market.
What is an LFP battery?
LFP refers to a battery that uses lithium iron phosphate (Li-FePO4) as an anode material. The reason we were not familiar with LFP batteries is because domestic manufacturers mainly used ternary batteries, the representative product being commonly called lithium-ion batteries. It is also called an NCM battery because it uses nickel, cobalt, and manganese as the anode material, which is one of the four major components of a battery (anode material, cathode material, electrolyte, and separator).
There was a strong perception that LFP batteries were not suitable for electric vehicle use due to their low energy density, being heavy and having a short driving range.
However, LFP's unique advantages were clear. First of all, because it is based on iron, the supply chain is stable. This is where price competitiveness can be achieved compared to NCM batteries. In addition, it has a long lifespan due to low deterioration phenomenon and has chemically stable characteristics compared to NCM. Battery manufacturers have been paying attention to these advantages and gradually improving the performance of LFP batteries. Among these, BYD's new technology, the blade battery, which is also applied to the Torres EVX, attracts attention.
