EXtrAPower - Enabling Xtreme Automotive Power

A consortium of engineers and chemists is building a battery that can fully recharge in the time it takes to fill a petrol tank. Current electric vehicles rely on batteries that charge slowly and degrade under high power demands, limiting their appeal for performance cars, heavy goods vehicles, or any application requiring rapid energy delivery. The project combines Nyobolt’s ultra-fast charging cell chemistry with WAE Technologies’ expertise in high-performance electric drivetrains, while Coventry University and the University of Cambridge optimise the cells for durability across a wide temperature range. If successful, the collaboration will produce a battery that delivers both extreme power and a long cycle life—two properties that have historically been trade-offs. This could accelerate the shift to zero-emission vehicles in sectors where downtime matters, such as logistics fleets, emergency services, and high-performance consumer cars. The work is applied, not fundamental: the partners are commercialising an existing technology, not discovering new physics. The immediate impact would be a practical, manufacturable battery system that makes electric vehicles more competitive with internal combustion engines on refuelling speed and sustained power output.