- How did the idea of starting NCPOWER come about?

It all started with an internship at the electric vehicle company Comarth in Murcia, where I worked my way up through the ranks to the position of production manager.

After the demise of this company, I joined DFSK where I continued my research into lithium solutions that would improve the performance, charging and discharging times and safety of batteries installed in electric vehicles. This allowed me to lead a comprehensive commercial vehicle electrification project.

That knowledge and experience coupled with a passion for electrification allowed me to embark on my own adventure in 2019. Dfter more than 10 years of experience in the electrification of electric vehicles, a deep knowledge of the lithium battery sector and the different existing national and international markets, NCPOWER was born.

Our purpose is to offer innovative and competitive solutions within the lithium battery industry, having as our main objective to understand the needs of our customers and to develop energy solutions based on state-of-the-art lithium batteries adapted to each customer in a customised way.

It was always clear to us that we wanted to be a different company, one that would offer something more than what was already on the market.

- What technological innovations do these batteries incorporate?

NCPOWER has developed a proprietary technology for battery management, the NCPOWER System. A battery management system (BMS) that offers a number of advantages in battery performance, productivity and energy savings, thereby extending the life of the batteries while allowing for greater sustainability and energy/economic savings.

On the other hand, NCPOWER has its own NCPOWER Data Center: The purpose of the NCPOWER data centre is to collect and store detailed information about the usage and performance of the lithium battery, while monitoring the health status of the lithium battery accurately and at any time. Thanks to our monitoring technology, we can continuously track each battery to ensure that it is functioning properly. In addition, BMS technology allows us to anticipate potential risks, damage, increased power requirements and even future optimisation of battery performance.

- The global market for lithium batteries is experiencing an unprecedented phase of expansion. Why is this happening, will it pass or will it continue over time?

If there is one market on the rise, it is lithium batteries. Its growth is staggering. As the energy transition accelerates, countries and consumers alike are increasingly striving to decarbonise and work towards a low-carbon economy. This means a shift away from fossil fuels towards electrification.

As the inclination for battery technologies in vehicles (passenger and freight) and stationary storage grows significantly, the boom in lithium batteries is greater. This demand projection is in line with a global warming scenario and changes in energy systems.

The electric vehicles will be the most significant contributor to future battery growth, accounting for around 55 % of total demand by the end of the decade.

The stationary storage will be the next largest contributor, with a projected demand of over 2.5 TWh in 2030, 29 % of the total market.

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Lithium batteries will dominate the market this decade. According to the latest data published by the international energy agency, the percentage of lithium batteries continues to grow compared to traditional lead batteries, which is already a success in terms of sustainability, environmental protection, etc.

The many benefits of lithium batteries over traditional batteries are a clear reason to stay with lithium for a long time: lithium batteries require no maintenance, allow fast charging, are lighter, have a much higher energy yield in extreme temperatures, do not emit gases and have a life span 5 times longer than lead-acid batteries.

The main advantages of safety, durability and capacities have made them the energy source par excellence for electrifying large fleets of vehicles, industrial machinery and as the main source of energy storage.

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Batteries are a key part of the transition to the circular economy. With more and more appliances and even renewable energy generation relying on batteries to operate, it is imperative to develop batteries that are more sustainable, high-performing and safe throughout their life cycle. They must also be reusable, remanufacturable or recyclable. In order to innovate in this regard, the European Commission has launched action packages aimed at modernising EU legislation on batteries.

The need to move away from fossil fuels is a reality we all understand. Electric mobility is an answer to the climate crisis and, despite the challenges ahead, progress is promising.

At NCPOWER we continue to work to develop increasingly efficient, innovative and sustainable lithium batteries, which are key to the present and future of electric mobility in Spain.

- The company was founded only four years ago and already produces 1,200 lithium batteries per year for electric vehicles. How have you managed to grow so fast? What are the reasons for these good numbers?

NCPOWER has consolidated its position as a leading manufacturer of LifePo4 lithium-ion batteries in Spain.. Its success is largely due to its advanced NCPOWER System, which combines cutting-edge technology with 100% solutions customised for each project and customer.

Each battery pack is custom-developed to meet the specific needs of each customer, taking full advantage of the NCPOWER System, which is based on an advanced battery management system (BMS) and telemetry. This allows optimal performance to be achieved with a significant reduction in operating costs, resulting in significantly improved productivity and virtually zero maintenance.

As such, NCPOWER batteries offer higher performance than other battery types, balancing speeds 22 times faster than other lithium batteries, recharging of the 50% in just 30 minutes and real-time monitoring of battery status.

Cutting-edge technology is one of NCPOWER's main distinguishing features, but it also highlights its unwavering commitment to the environment.

The company cares deeply about caring for the planet and is actively engaged in reducing CO2 emissions through the design and production of sustainable lithium-ion batteries that position us as a strategic partner in building a cleaner, more efficient future.

- What are the forecasts for the coming year?

We have recently achieved certification of the production process and R100.02 approval, and we are already in the process of patenting our own battery management system (BMS), as well as the NCPOWER System itself.

We are satisfied that we have been able to overcome the limits of traditional electrification and are already looking ahead to 2024 and the challenges ahead:

● To become a benchmark in the Spanish sector, positioning ourselves as one of the main suppliers of complete lithium battery solutions.

 ● The expansion of our production capacity with new facilities.

  ● Expand our staff of specialist professionals in the different business areas and, especially, in the R&D&I departments, which will allow us to continue increasing our value proposition and our competitive advantage.

● Continuing to work on specialising in light commercial vehicles and utility vehicles. And diversification of our solutions to serve the various industrial energy storage markets.

"We feel absolutely proud and inspired to keep moving forward and growing, as today, NCPOWER has a presence in more than 20 countries as a lithium battery manufacturer to supply electric vehicle manufacturers with high production volumes and high efficiency and customisation needs," says the company's CEO, Mario Nicolás Carcelén.

- How do you see the future of sustainable mobility: will we reach the dates stipulated by Europe or is it not possible?

We are witnessing a disruptive transformation in the field of mobility worldwide. On the one hand we have the massive arrival of new technologies in all aspects of mobility, the need to continue on the path of decarbonisation of mobility, and finally, a concentration of population in urban and metropolitan areas with major implications for mobility.

In this sense, public administrations should encourage and promote the most sustainable and healthy means and modes of mobility in urban and metropolitan environments, giving priority to active mobility that includes measures to facilitate personal mobility in situations of functional diversity, collective public transport and high-occupancy mobility schemes.

To achieve this, plans such as that of the European Union, which aims to install at least 1 million charging points for this type of vehicle by 2030, are essential.

In terms of automotive development, there is a unique opportunity for sustainable mobility. Currently, there is a wealth of funds (Next Generation, Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, the PERTE for the Electric and Connected Vehicle, among others) that are an excellent opportunity to advance and accelerate the sustainable transformation of the sector.

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It is important to reinforce public and private investment to reorient the productive model, driving the green transition, decarbonisation, energy efficiency, deployment of renewable energy, electrification of the economy, development of energy storage, circular economy, nature-based solutions and enhancing the resilience of all economic sectors.

The objective is to accelerate the transformation of the sector and it will not be easy to meet the deadlines and agendas set by Europe. The transport sector must be decarbonised in record time and move towards more sustainable cities with an efficient, low-carbon sustainability model.

- What sets NCPOWER batteries apart from the competition?                          

Most companies in the sector present themselves as assemblers in the production of lithium batteries, emphasising their products or their assembly processes. However, NCPOWER is a battery manufacturer with its own technology. Our strong technological linkage (R&D) and the differentiating features of our own battery management system (BMS) and the high customisation of our solutions give us a unique and clearly differentiating advantage.

Beyond the technology component, as a customer specialist, NCPOWER differentiates itself from its competitors by being reliable and establishing long-lasting business relationships:                                                                                                                                            

1) Trust. We establish long-lasting trusting relationships with our customers as a win-win situation in which trust and security of business conditions play an important role.                                    

2) Peace of mind. Our strong links in R&D and all the development and engineering processes that are carried out in NCPOWER allow us to be at the forefront of technology and with a 100% support and after-sales service that is resolute in time and form.

3) Safety. Thanks to the monitoring of the operation of the batteries, their charge and discharge cycles, as well as a complete technical control, we are able to offer differential guarantees. To date, the percentage of incidents is 0.0038%.       

 4) Sustainability. Emission-free, pollution-free 100% batteries. We reduce the carbon footprint through energy savings. Our system extends battery life with more charge cycles. Longer lasting batteries.

- What are the main challenges in the development and manufacture of batteries for electric vehicles?

Batteries in electric vehicles must be optimised in terms of safety, durability and performance.

The trend and progress of the battery market goes hand in hand with the technology used in manufacturing.

At NCPOWER, as a lithium battery manufacturer, we take on the challenges and commitments to continue optimising our batteries to meet the main requirements and demands of our customers: greater safety, reduced weight, improved performance, longer-lasting batteries with faster charging times, and improvements in the manufacturing process as the main component to improve the useful life and sustainability of the batteries.

- What kind of customers are NCPOWER's systems aimed at?

We are targeting a B2B industrial customer. Our target audience is manufacturers of electric vehicles, specifically light commercial vehicles for low-intensity goods transport (pick-up trucks, vans, etc.) and utility vehicles designed to move over all types of terrain.

NCPOWER supplies customised LiFePO4 lithium batteries to leading commercial vehicle manufacturers such as DFSK. DFSK is the world's No. 1 manufacturer of this type of vehicle.

Our technology is present on 3 continents and in more than 12 countries around the world such as Portugal, the Netherlands, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Mexico, Germany, France, England, Sweden, Norway and Finland.