Airbus has signed a research and development agreement with Renault Group to help both companies advance their research on electrification, improving their respective range of products.
The long-term agreement between the European aerospace manufacturer and the French automotive developer, which was signed on November 30, 2022, is dedicated to developing energy storage-related technologies. The parties have agreed to cooperate in the optimization of energy management and improvement of battery weight by investigating “the best pathways” to switch from the current advanced lithium-ion to all solid-state battery designs. This has the potential to double the energy density of batteries.
“This cross-industry partnership with Renault Group will help us mature the next generation of batteries as part of Airbus’ electrification roadmap,” Airbus chief technical officer Sabine Klauke said in a company statement.
“Bringing together Renault Group’s experience in electric vehicles with our own track record in electric flight demonstrators will allow us to accelerate the development of the disruptive technologies required for future hybrid aircraft architectures in the 2030s and beyond,” Klauke added.
“Airbus and Renault Group’s cooperation on electrification will play an important role in bringing change to the transport landscape, successfully contributing to the ambition of net-zero emissions by 2050, of both the automotive and the aviation sector,” Airbus said.
The Airbus-Renault Group deal also includes a joint investigation into the full lifecycle of future batteries from production to recyclability. Airbus said this will help parties “to prepare the industrialization of these future battery designs while assessing their carbon footprint across their entire lifecycle.”