According to a Goldman Sachs analysis piece out this week, the future of the EV space is going to be dictated by the firms capable of improving the EV battery marketplace. Those able to drive the energy value proposition will determine the long-term direction of the movement.
Tesla has set the tone for the space. That’s a relatively uncontroversial thesis. But it’s not easy to find new investors ready to put serious capital behind the idea that TSLA shares are a bargain. However, niche battery technology may be an underexploited zone of opportunity, according to Goldman.
These firms, the investment bank says, are particularly well placed to make breakthroughs in the current lithium-ion batteries, and the next generation of all solid-state batteries, or ASSBs.
One such niche battery tech play with strong IP, expanding market positioning, and growing catalysts is KULR Technology Group Inc (OTCMKTS:KULR), an electric vehicle play that stakes its claim to the battery de-risking theme. It’s also a bona fide 5G play, but the EV battery application is clearly the main argument right now.
The EV Space is Charged Up
As noted above, KULR Technology Group Inc (OTCMKTS:KULR) is an emerging player in the electric vehicle battery tech space, which has become one of the most engaging focal points for the seemingly unstoppable EV investing theme.
Everyone has started to weight in on this theme, from Buffet to Cubin to Branson to top Wall Street houses like Goldman and JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley.
The theme strikes a chord with this moment in history because it resonates with the fence-top tipping point we face as a society where fossil fuels are concerned. The current moment is infused with significance around the choice-point of that transition, with stocks in the space leading the major averages over the past three months as investment pours in to position for the shift in flows related to the larger theme.
But, while many players have already run to price in the shift, KULR is still pricing under $3 share despite its development relationship with NASA and its recent advances toward marketing partnerships and increased exposure. It may just be the only stock left in the space that offers true deep value given analyst projections for EV battery technology.
The simplest way to understand the value proposition for KULR is as a de-risking technology for EV plays, where one bad headline related to a fire or accident can mean the difference between a billion-dollar future and oblivion.
Further Legitimation
In that vein, it shouldn’t be overlooked that KULR Technology Group Inc (OTCMKTS:KULR) just announced a joint collaboration with the CSA Group (formerly the Canadian Standards Association), a leading standards development organization and a global provider of testing and certification services, to develop a new battery safety and testing procedure to be titled: C22.2 No. 350 Test Method for Safety and Performance of Thermal Barriers For Use in Batteries and Battery Based Energy Storage Systems.
According to the company’s most recent release, KULR’s passive propagation resistant (PPR) design solutions prevent dangerous cell-to-cell thermal runaway propagation. The Company’s collaboration with CSA Group is the most recent of several alliances KULR has formed to which it can apply its expertise and help shape the regulatory and industry standards for battery shipments. KULR has previously provided battery safety research and testing devices to various international agencies, including the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). KULR also participated in meetings of the United Nations Transport of Dangerous Goods Sub-Committee to establish test methods and criteria by which lithium batteries can be more effectively regulated, based on their inherent hazards.
As a top standards development organization and a global provider of testing and certification services, CSA Group is dedicated to safety, social good and sustainability. Since its establishment in 1919, CSA Group has developed a portfolio of over 3,000 standards, codes and related products in 54 technologies. Through its certification services and standards development, CSA Group actively encourages innovative thinking and promotes the adoption of new technologies.
Lithium battery fires — such as the incidents that destroyed a UPS plane in 2010 and a FedEx truck in 2016 — have increasingly become a public safety concern. The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has called for stricter testing and shipping standards for lithium batteries, and in May 2020 the board submitted safety recommendations to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), a division of the US Department of Transportation that develops, issues and enforces safety regulations for the transport of hazardous materials.
“There is an absolute real-world need to improve lithium battery safety, and we are pleased to collaborate with CSA Group to define procedures that meet this need,” stated Dr. Timothy Knowles, KULR Co-Founder and CTO. “Multiple international regulatory agencies are focused on technologies that can reduce the likelihood of battery fires in transportation, energy storage, vehicle applications, and consumer electronics. A recent report by the Naval Surface Warfare Center validated the efficacy of KULR’s battery safety technology, and the US Consumer Product Safety Commission reported that KULR’s design solutions can stop fires and explosions in lithium-ion battery packs. Given the technical caliber of the teams that conducted these tests, the results provide a solid vote of confidence for KULR’s technology.”
Technical Analysis
KULR Technology Group Inc (OTCMKTS:KULR) is an emerging EV play that recently broke out to the upside. The stock’s run from $1.20 was under constructive consolidation with key support in play in the $2-2.20 area as a nice pullback territory.
That quickly led to about 35% in upside action. Now, the stock could be poised for an extension breakout if it moves above the $3 level as momentum picks up, highlighting its potential to test the $3.75 range resistance target above, as shown above.
