High-Capacity 6T Military Vehicle Battery Announced

Epsilor Electric Fuel Ltd. has completed the development if its new generation NATO 6T Li-Ion battery for military vehicles, reportedly offering the highest energy capacity in the market of 4,400Wh/174Ah. 

The new battery, named ELI-52526-GM, will be presented by Epsilor — a developer and manufacturer of smart Li-Ion batteries and chargers — at the International Armored Vehicle Conference, in Farnborough, UK, January 21-23, 2025.

Epsilor is part of the Michigan based AROTECH Corporation, which develops and manufactures advanced electronic subsystems for defense applications and simulation systems for aerospace and vehicle applications.

MIL-PRF-32565C Compliance Tests

During the last year, Epsilor’s COMBATT 6T batteries are undergoing rigorous tests by US based independent laboratories, as part of the company’s certification campaign aiming to obtain the US ARMY Military Performance Specification Compliance (MIL-PRF-32565C – TYPE 2). The tests include bullet penetration, heat up to 500˚C, performance in cold and hot temperatures, long cycle life, communication with client’s platforms, and more.

The new battery, named ELI-52526-GM, and which will be presented at IAV 2025, is designed according to the same principles, aiming to meet the same requirements of the said MIL-PRF-32565C.

Designed for use in defense vehicles and deployable defense systems, the new battery will provide military users with extremely high energy capacity, of 4,400Wh in a 28kg pack, six times the energy of traditional Lead-Acid batteries with a similar 6T form factor, and approximately 50% more energy than any other 6T Li-Ion battery.

During the last decade, Lithium 6T batteries have become common in a wide range of military vehicles and deployable systems, serving various applications, such as long silent-watch missions, energy regeneration, hybrid vehicle propulsion, robotics and UGV, auxiliary energy banks, etc.

Epsilor offers a range of NATO Standard 6T Lithium batteries, optimized for various defense systems:

• COMBATT ELI-52526-DM/GM: high-capacity Li-Ion batteries, which provide extremely high energy capacity of 3.6kWh up to 4.4kWh (144Ah-174Ah), complying with MIL-PRF-32565C (Type 2).
• COMBATT ELP-02426-M: high capacity LFP battery, with superior safety and energy density of 2,560Wh/100Ah, complying with the safety requirements of MIL-PRF-32565C (Type 1).
• COMBATT ELI-52526-C: high-capacity Li-Ion battery, which provides extremely high energy density of 4.2kWh (166Ah), in a cost-effective pack. This battery is optimal for robotics, tactical energy storage and micro-grid applications.

Ronen Badichi, President of the AROTECH Energy Solutions Division and Epsilor’s General Manager, commented, “With our new COMBATT battery we overcame the lithium battery safety issue, which is considered a major obstacle. 

“By using a unique energy absorbing design, we are offering the highest energy capacity in the 6T category, while staying within the demanding safety and operational requirements of the US ARMY.”