Log 9’s ultra-fast battery technology promises full charge in under 15 minutes

Bangalore-headquartered deep-tech start-up Log 9 Materials has launched what it says is a first-of-its-kind rapid charging battery technology for electric vehicles, which is capable of fully charging EV batteries in under 15 minutes.

The company has utilised its expertise and know-how of supercapacitor technology and Graphene material to develop the battery, which makes the new technology far superior as compared to the EV batteries available in the domestic and global markets. 

The start-up claims that its rapid charging battery packs can be fully charged in less than 15 minutes, last for more than 15 years, offer upto 5x power (resulting in increased load-bearing capacity and acceleration) and is 5 times safer in terms of fire-resistance and impact-resistance, when compared to the popular lithium-ion batteries. The battery packs also promise a range of more than 70km for electric two-wheelers and 60-80km for electric three-wheelers.

Log 9 is specifically targeting B2B last-mile delivery segment for the deployment of its rapid charging batteries for which it has partnered with companies in the logistics, mobility, and e-commerce space to run pilots for its newly-launched battery technology. The large-scale pilots have already commenced in partnership with companies including Amazon, Vogo, Shadowfax, Delhivery, among other key fleets operators of the country.

Akshay Singhal, founder and CEO, Log 9 Materials said: “In the current scenario, 2-wheeler and 3-wheeler EVs in our country needs an average charging time of 4-5 hours, leading to significant downtime which in turn affects consumer sentiment adversely; especially in the commercial segment wherein downtime directly impacts revenues. This is exactly where we at Log 9 are stepping in to solve the problem and/or bridge the gaps. We are presenting an optimised solution for intracity two- and three-wheelers through our latest supercapacitor-based battery technology, which enables EVs to be charged in as low as 5 minutes."

"Apart from providing superfast charging for EVs, Log 9’s battery packs will also be superior in terms of range and power density and will be positioned as a highly cost-effective solution. We have identified suitable partners (including OEMs and fleet operators) for both two and three-wheeler integrations of our battery technology into their vehicles and our commercial pilots have already started which will run over the next 3-4 months,” said Singhal.

Targeting 3,000 EVs by 2022
Over the next to one year (by the end of FY2022), the start-up plans to deploy its Rapid Charging Battery Packs in over 3,000 vehicles (including 2W and 3W), and thereafter by FY2023 the target is to deploy in over 20,000 vehicles across India.

Log 9 says it has already received a lot of requests from potential investors, manufacturers and key stakeholders in India’s EV sector for conducting demonstrations. It has also received LoIs (letter of intent) for deployment in more than 10,000 vehicles as of date. After running pilots across India, Log 9 is also planning to reach out to/explore markets in Southeast Asia with its innovative solution to improve the EV landscape. 

“We believe that EV adoption has been slow in India because of serious downtime challenges and battery performance issues faced by consumers. Our latest technology will eliminate all of these challenges leading to a steep uptake in electric vehicles in the country over the long-term, and eventually contributing to a cleaner environment for the upcoming generations. Once deployed at scale, Log 9’s Rapid Charging Batteries can become a game-changer for commercial EV fleets, as fleet owners/operators will be able to realise the full benefit of the low-operational cost of EVs from day one of running their vehicles,” added Singhal.

Log 9 Materials is a start-up incubated from IIT-Roorkee and has been working in the electric mobility domain for the last 3 years. It is also developing aluminium fuel cells in India for EVs, which is currently in the development stage and is meant for applications in Long Haul Light Commercial Vehicles (LCVs) and Heavy Commercial Vehicles (HCVs).