Maxwell Technologies, a leading developer and manufacturer of capacitive energy storage and power delivery solutions, announced a technology partnership with Zhejiang Geely Holding Group (Geely), the parent company of leading brands such as Volvo and Geely Auto.

The partnership focuses on the integration of state-of-the-art ultracapacitors and advanced power conversion electronics into Geely’s global automotive vehicle lineup in support of their fleet electrification strategy. The collaboration kicks off with the inclusion of Maxwell’s ultracapacitor-based peak power subsystem in five mild-hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles which will initially be available in North America and Europe.

The production ramp for these vehicles is slated to begin in late 2019; it marks the most significant milestone in Maxwell’s automotive market history, the company said.

The automotive industry originally adopted ultracapacitors for start-stop applications because of the technology’s fast response and reliable performance. OEMs are now adopting ultracapacitors as a technology of choice to deliver aggregate peak power to functions such as electric active-roll control, electric power steering, electro-turbocharging and energy recuperation in hybrid vehicles.

In addition, due to the long product life ultracapacitors exhibit, they are also being adopted as an alternative or complementary energy storage source to batteries in power backup solutions for autonomous driving and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS).

As we prepared to bring our new, high performance features into the mainstream of our next generation vehicles, it became evident that ultracapacitors would be essential to address the increasing electrification challenges the automotive industry is facing. In our global search for a partner who could develop and supply a sophisticated multi-function energy storage device, it became clear that Maxwell’s deep automotive experience and technical know-how qualified them as the only choice.

The Maxwell ultracapacitor subsystem has proven to provide significant support for our hybrid cars and will be able to economically handle the challenging peak power demands in a way that batteries alone cannot. We are confident that through our partnership with Maxwell, we will be able to successfully introduce innovative and differentiated features into our core platform offerings while providing an improved and reliable driving experience to our customers.

—Qingfeng Feng, Vice President and CTO, Geely

Maxwell’s latest partnership with Geely represents the next stage of evolution with a multi-cell subsystem. This turnkey subsystem not only combines advanced ultracapacitors but also adds Maxwell’s advanced power conversion electronics to supply enhanced performance for a wide variety of demanding applications.

The launch of this multi-function subsystem in Geely’s Compact Modular Architecture (CMA) is a paradigm shift in ultracapacitor use for the automotive industry and allows OEMs like Geely to address increasing voltage stabilization needs economically as the industry rapidly moves towards a more electrified world.

Maxwell and its affiliates have a long-standing history in the automotive industry and currently have more than 6.1 million automobiles using its ultracapacitor technology. The company supplied its start-stop designs to Continental AG in 2010, and has since supplied ultracapacitors to PSA and General Motors for start-stop applications and autonomous driving backup power, and to Lamborghini for regenerative braking.

Maxwell ultracapacitors are AEC-Q200 and VDA 6.3 certified, and the company passes the rigorous TS16949 industry certification.