Japanese automobile manufacturers Honda has recently announced plans to establish a new joint venture with Mitsubishi, ALTNA Co., Ltd., with each holding a 50% stake, in July 2024. Based on the memorandum of understanding signed by the two companies in October 2023, this new joint venture will focus on optimizing the cost of using electric vehicles (EVs), extending the service life of batteries, and improving resource recycling within Japan. It also aims to balance the increasing demand for grid capacity through smart charging, increasing the proportion of renewable energy in Japan's energy mix.
ALTNA will combine Honda's EV, battery control and connected technologies with Mitsubishi's power generation expertise, extending to the management of battery storage systems and smart charging operations, striving to offer new mobility services that reduce the total cost of ownership for EV users and create new power supply operations for the long-term use of EV batteries.
The new company will launch a battery leasing business. ALTNA will collaborate with affiliated leasing companies of Honda and Mitsubishi Corporation to begin selling lease plans, starting with the Honda N-VAN e:, a new commercial-use mini-EV that Honda plans to launch in October 2024. When a vehicle is leased to a customer, ALTNA will retain ownership of the battery and monitor battery usage during the lease period. Continuous monitoring of the battery's condition, including predictions of future battery degradation, will enhance the reliability of the battery, measured by various parameters, including the state of health (SOH). Based on the high reliability of the batteries, ALTNA will conduct business that utilizes batteries for a long period or throughout their entire lifecycle, from the sale of new vehicles to ownership by second and subsequent owners.
The new company will also engage in the battery repurposing and battery recycling. After the end of their use in electric vehicles, batteries will be recovered and used for ALTNA's grid storage battery business (battery repurposing). ALTNA will set leasing prices based on the assumption that batteries will be used for a long period, from vehicle-mounted to stationary applications, which will help to reduce the financial burden on EV users. ALTNA will continuously monitor the usage conditions of EV batteries through its battery leasing business and then recover end-of-life EV batteries based on data obtained through long-term monitoring, aiming to achieve resource circulation-oriented manufacturing.
ALTNA will also offer smart charging services to reduce consumer usage costs. Through EV charging plans that utilize advanced energy control technologies to optimize the electricity costs for EV users, charging will be avoided during peak grid usage times. By linking its energy control system with customers' EVs, charging will be automatically performed at the time of day when the procurement cost of electricity is lowest, according to the vehicle's usage schedule. This will eliminate the burden on customers to identify the optimal charging timing on their own and contribute to reducing the cost of EV usage. Furthermore, ALTNA's charging plans will charge EVs during times when there is a surplus of renewable energy on the power grid, promoting the use of green renewable energy.
Additionally, ALTNA will continue to consider offering Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) services, with an eye on the future opening of the electricity market.
