A partnership has recently been announced between one of the U.S.'s leading electric vehicle manufacturers and Gemlan Tech Inc. of Canada.

The partnership has been formed to assist with the installation of Gemlan Tech's 'Flex-Series' solar panels to the vehicle's roof, bonnet and trunk allowing for the power generated to be stored as a separate source used to power the vehicle's ancillaries, such as its entertainment system, sat nav, air conditioning, lighting etc. This would then leave the vehicle's main batteries to be required for the vehicle's powertrain.

A small separate research facility has been set up by the two companies to allow for specific team members only to develop the system away from the vehicle's main production area. This set-up has been created to ensure that any technological advances identified are able to remain 'in-house' and allow for the application of patents to be pursued without fear of competition.

This would be the first time where an electric vehicle has 2 completely separate electrical power sources powering different requirements at the same time.

Oliver Elwin, Chief Engineer with Gemlan Tech Inc. explained, "This partnership, and the development of this unique independent power source system, has its challenges. We have been in discussion for some time now and our research has already identified a solution for such a challenge."

It is rumoured that an announcement is to be expected by mid to late-2024 after their first production tests have been completed and analysed.

"As with all such technological advances we do anticipate some unexpected issues, however, with the initial tests already completed several months ago we do not foresee any delays in the production tests being completed on time," Oliver Elwin added.