GM's President Explains Its Bet On LMR Batteries For EV Trucks

Today the EV battery world was dominated by two main chemistries: nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) and lithium iron phosphate (LFP). The first is high-performing and pricier, the second is cheaper but can't hold as much energy or charge as quickly. 

General Motors is betting on lithium manganese rich (LMR) batteries to split the difference. GM announced the move some months ago, claiming that LMR packs can cost about as much as LFP while offering better energy density. It plans to use those batteries in variants of future electric pickups and SUVs. 

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We wanted to know more about this new direction, so we asked GM President Mark Reuss all about it when he appeared on the Plugged-In Podcast not too long ago. Check out the clip above to hear it straight from the source. 

What's better about LMR? Reuss says it may be the key to offering a midsize electric pickup that doesn't sacrifice range. Today's trucks, he explained, are generally large (and expensive) because they need to carry such huge battery packs. 

"You can take thousands of dollars out of those packs and offer people an incredible value, with a duty cycle that's almost the same as a gasoline pickup truck," Reuss said.

GM expects to use LMR batteries in future electric pickup trucks and SUVs. 

Photo by: Mack Hogan/InsideEVs

But the tech, which Ford is working on too, by the way, isn't the end-all-be-all for EV batteries, he said. 

“Is it a better solution today than what we’re using today? Absolutely,” he said, of LMR. “Is it the answer? I don’t think so. Not yet. I think there’s more to go.”

Contact the author: Tim.Levin@InsideEVs.com