The solid-state battery has been the moonshot of electric vehicles — a cleaner, lighter, and safer way to store energy that could finally silence the skeptics who say EVs can’t outrun physics. And now, it looks like Rimac, the Croatian hypercar maker that already shocked the world with the Nevera, is aiming to make that moonshot real.
At this year’s IAA Mobility show in Munich, Rimac unveiled its first solid-state battery (SSB) — a technology that might do what lithium-ion never quite could: shrink, slim down, and speed up the EV powertrain. More than just another whiteboard promise, Rimac’s SSB now has a timeline and a production partner, signaling that the technology could actually make it out of the lab and into a real car.
From Hype To Hardware
Rimac has teamed up with ProLogium and Mitsubishi Chemical Group to turn its next-generation battery chemistry into something scalable. The specs alone are eyebrow-raising: 10 percent smaller than current packs, 20 percent lighter, and delivering 15 to 25 percent more energy density. The numbers sound futuristic, but that’s the point — Rimac wants to show that the future can be engineered.
What really sets this project apart is the company’s stated production goal: internal validation testing is expected to wrap by late 2026, the first sample battery by 2027 and a B sample fit for testing by 2028. Depending on how that test goes, there should be a battery ready for limited production by 2030, according to Rima Technology COO Nurdin Pitarevic. For a company that built the world’s fastest electric car, that’s an aggressive but credible timeline. Rimac has the facilities, the funding, and, crucially, the credibility to back it up.
Power Meets Practicality
Underneath the hype is some serious, next-level, space-age engineering. Rimac’s new pack weighs just 847 pounds yet manages a power density of 1,000 watts per pound — a huge leap over the 800-watt average of today’s best cylindrical lithium-ion cells. That means faster acceleration, longer range, and less bulk, which could free up interior space in everything from a hypercar to a luxury sedan.
Even more impressive, Rimac’s SSB reportedly retains 95 percent of its energy at -20°C (-4°F). That’s a direct answer to one of EV owners’ biggest complaints: cold-weather range loss. Most EV batteries today can lose 30 to 40 percent of their range when temperatures drop. Rimac’s design — using a solid electrolyte instead of a flammable liquid — doesn’t just solve the cold-weather problem; it also alleviates the fire risk that has haunted EV headlines for years.
Beyond The Hypercar
If all this sounds like it belongs in a million-dollar Nevara, Rimac wants to change that perception. The company’s goal isn’t just to power its own halo cars, but to supply technology to other automakers, a shift that could make Rimac more like a high-performance Intel than a boutique Ferrari. The company’s co-ownership with Porsche already gives it a natural path into broader OEM partnerships, potentially putting Rimac-developed SSBs in future models from Volkswagen Group brands and beyond.
A Turning Point, If It Delivers
Of course, there’s still a gap between the lab and the assembly line. Rimac’s announcement doesn’t change the fact that no automaker has yet mass-produced a solid-state EV battery. Toyota, BMW, and Mercedes all claim to be within striking distance, but Rimac’s clear production roadmap — coupled with its reputation for executing at impossible scales — makes this announcement harder to dismiss.
The stakes are enormous. If Rimac’s timeline holds and its SSBs hit the road by the end of the decade, it could redefine what electric cars can be: lighter, faster, safer, and more efficient than anything powered by lithium-ion.
Until then, the solid-state battery remains the most tantalizing rumor in the EV world. But thanks to Rimac, it’s starting to look less like wishful thinking and more like a deadline.
Source: Automotive News; Rimac