Heavy-duty battery and electric vehicle engineering services provider, Switch Technologies (Switch), has unveiled the world’s first operational vehicle powered by Echion Technologies’ (Echion) proprietary ultra-fast charging XNO® active anode material technology. The vehicle, a Toyota Land Cruiser 79 Series that has been modified into a plug-in hybrid configuration, participated in a live track demonstration at the Australian Automation and Robotics Precinct (AARP) in Perth, Australia on 3 December.

The Land Cruiser is equipped with cells manufactured by Li-FUN, an XNO® cell development partner. XNO® enables lithium-ion batteries to safely fast charge in less than ten minutes, maintain high energy densities even at extreme temperatures, and deliver high-power across a cycle life of more than 10,000 cycles. The material has been specially engineered to enable electrified heavy-duty vehicles, such as the Land Cruiser, to operate with the highest productivity and lowest total cost of ownership.

Switch, across a nine-month period, developed new XNO® battery modules and packs, along with drivetrain modifications and control systems to hybridise the Land Cruiser, which is a commonly used workhorse vehicle for Australian mining operations. Switch has now begun a comprehensive test and validation programme to further highlight the benefits that XNO® anode materials bring for batteries used in heavy duty industries.

Jan Haak, CEO of Switch Technologies said, “Whether it’s about removing diesel particulate from near people, reducing emissions in fleet, or boosting the performance of the existing machine, we are excited to scale this XNO®-powered product into the market. We are delighted at the early feedback from customers as we've developed this machine to be supportable and reliable in harsh conditions as is expected of a typical off -road vehicle.”

The launch event of the XNO®-powered Land Cruiser was attended by over 60 representatives from key mining stakeholders representing Tier 1 miners, contractors, service providers and government.

“Mining customers are telling us that they’ll be able to operate the vehicle as a pure EV for a whole shift, with the confidence of a full range diesel machine should they need a longer trip. Being able to fully charge in less than ten minutes removes friction that operators experience with conventional EV systems on site” continued Jan.

Echion’s XNO® anode material is available at scale, today, thanks to Echion’s longstanding partnership with the global leader in the production niobium products, CBMM. Earlier this year, the two companies opened the world’s largest niobium anode manufacturing facility, dedicated to produce up to produce 2000 tonnes per year of XNO®; the equivalent of 1 GWh of lithium-ion cells.