The new Interpon A1000 product demonstrates the growing functional role of powder coatings in automotive applications and reinforces AkzoNobel’s position in the EV mobility sector. Through its Resicoat powder brand, the company already provides solutions designed to deliver electrical insulation for EV components such as battery systems and electric motors.
AkzoNobel’s Powder Coatings business and Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer NIO have won one of the automotive industry’s most prestigious innovation awards
– the 2025 Altair Enlighten Award – in recognition of a co-developed product designed to help NIO achieve its 15-year EV battery longevity target.
The new coating, part of the Interpon A1000 range, is engineered to protect electric battery bottom plates and triples the lifespan of battery shielding coatings compared with existing solutions. This makes AkzoNobel the first coatings company to win in the Sustainable Product category.
Rather than relying on traditional charging, NIO allows drivers to quickly exchange depleted EV batteries for fully charged ones at automated Power Swap stations. However, repeated battery swaps can expose the bottom plate to abrasion, corrosion and mechanical wear.
Working closely with NIO, AkzoNobel’s Interpon brand developed a coating specifically designed for superior durability. It extends the underbody coating’s service life from five to 15 years, reduces coating thickness by 70% and cuts vehicle weight by 2.2kg.
“The innovative coating we’ve jointly developed with AkzoNobel has greatly enhanced the reliability and service life of our battery systems. It supports NIO’s 15-year battery longevity strategy and marks a critical breakthrough in EV material innovation,” has stated Shizhe Tzeng, NIO’s Vice-President Battery System.
“We’re extremely proud to win this prestigious award together with NIO. It’s recognition for our joint commitment to groundbreaking innovation, while also highlighting our leadership in EV coating technology and our continued focus on promoting the sustainable development of the industry,” has added Jeff Jirak, Managing Director of AkzoNobel’s Powder Coatings business.
Beyond its protective properties, the coating also improves production efficiency. By replacing traditional PVC materials, it saves more than 2,000 tonnes of material annually, while the resulting weight reduction cuts vehicle electricity consumption by over 2 GWh. With zero VOC emissions and a 95% powder recycling rate, the technology forms a sustainable closed-loop system across the entire product lifecycle.
The patented technology, in mass production since November 2024, has already been applied to around 80,000 NIO vehicles across multiple models. It was developed at AkzoNobel's Shanghai Technology Centre and is manufactured at the company’s Changzhou plant. Since partnering in 2020, AkzoNobel and NIO’s collaboration has expanded to core components including wheels, chassis, calipers and battery packs, covering the entire NIO vehicle range.
The Altair Enlighten Awards are the only global automotive industry accolades focused on vehicle lightweighting and sustainable development. The Sustainable Product category recognises projects that achieve breakthrough progress in reducing emissions, lightweighting, material recycling and enhancing safety.