IRENA says sodium-ion batteries could fall to $40/kWh at the cell level, setting up the first credible low-cost challenger to lithium-ion. (ESS News)
Sodium is far cheaper and easier to source—sodium carbonate averaged $100–500/ton from 2020–24, while lithium carbonate swung between $6–83K, giving SIBs a built-in cost advantage that doesn’t depend on commodity booms.
SIBs also avoid copper, use cheaper cathodes like manganese and iron, and perform reliably across temperature extremes, making them strong candidates for grid-scale storage as production ramps from ~70 GWh today toward 400 GWh by 2030.