Umicore's Sustainability and Financial Report

Glossary The below definitions cover Umicore's main business & technical abbreviations umicore Rechargeable Battery Materials Glossary: Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV): full electric vehicle Cathode active materials (CAM): The cathode is the positive side in a (rechargeable) lithium-ion battery. In the charging phase ions are released from the cathode and migrate to the anode (negative side), thereby storing electricity. In the discharging phase, the ions move back to the cathode, thereby releasing electricity. Cathode active materials are composed of lithium and metals and are critical components in batteries, determining to a large extent the energy density, power, price, durability, cyclability, fast charging, thermal stability... of the battery and its end application. Cathode chemistries: cathode active materials have different characteristics depending on type and ratio of metals. For example, Ni(Nickel) has high capacity, Mn(Manganese) and Co(Cobalt) has high safety and Al(Aluminum) increases power of a battery. NMC (Lithium-Nickel-Manganese-Cobalt-Oxide): One of the most successful li-ion cathode formulas developed to date and which has become to go-to powder to develop batteries. It delivers strong overall performance and excellent energy which makes it the preferred option for automotive batteries. NMC powder can be made in a variety of blends (depending on the proportional content of the different metals). Umicore covers the full spectrum of NMC chemistries, and its production lines are entirely flexible between the different types. NMC HV ("high voltage" NMC): step in NMC innovation roadmap allowing high charge voltage HLM (High Lithium and Manganese cathode material): a variant within the NMC family, with high lithium and manganese content, which is attracting much attention as it is cost-effective while offering higher energy density than LFP. Not yet commercialized in the industry but in development. Umicore is also actively working on this with customers. LFP (Lithium Iron phosphate): is a popular, cost-effective cathode material that is known to deliver excellent safety and long-life span. On the other hand, LFP delivers a lower nominal voltage, which results in lower specific energy when compared to other cathode materials on the market. NCA (Lithium Nickel-Cobalt-Aluminum Oxide): within the NMC family, however, replacing the manganese with aluminum. This chemistry has a high nickel content, which contributes to a longer distance that can be covered with a single-time charging. It comes, however, also at a higher cost point which makes it a somewhat lesser preferred chemistry by the automotive industry. Electrified vehicle (EV): Vehicle (passenger car or other) that runs fully or partially on electricity, rather than on conventional fuel. New Energy Vehicle policy (NEV): policy to promote electric vehicle deployment in China Solid State Batteries (SSB): A solid-state battery is a battery technology that uses solid electrodes and a solid electrolyte, instead of the liquid electrolytes found in lithium-ion batteries. Solid-state batteries can provide potential solutions for many problems of lithium-ion batteries, such as flammability, limited voltage, limited cycling performance and strength. As such they are on the roadmap of most car manufacturers to be gradually introduced as of the second half of the decade. Umicore has developed specific NMC cathode materials for solid state as well as innovative, break-through "catholyte" material, which combines the solid electrolyte and cathode materials in one component, hereby offering a strong value proposition. 104

View entire presentation