By Al Root

Electric vehicle adoption has slowed in America, but battery demand remains high, boosted by energy storage, defense, and space applications.

Now there is a new, advanced-technology battery company for investors to consider.

Monday, Factorial Energy announced the completion of its combination with special purpose acquisition company Cartesian Growth Corporation III. The new company trades on the Nasdaq under the stock symbol FAC.

Factorial stock was up 8.4% at $12.90 in midday trading, while the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 1% and 0.2%, respectively.

Factorial develops solid-state batteries, a little like QuantumScape, which investors might be more familiar with. Solid-state, in this instance, means the batteries have no liquid electrolyte facilitating the flow of electrical charge.

The batteries promise lower costs, faster charging, more per-charge range, and a better safety record. At scale, they could make EVs cheaper and even more convenient. They represent the possibility of making them more capable and cheaper than comparable gasoline-powered cars.

But solid-state batteries haven't been commercialized yet. Factorial's early partners include Hyundai, Kia, and Mercedes-Benz. The company shipped so-called B samples to Mercedes in 2024. That sample is essentially a functional prototype. After that is a C sample to verify process manufacturing. The D sample is ready for mass production. Factorial plans to ship batteries for the Karma supercar in 2027 or 2028.

Factorial's batteries are a little different than QuantumScape's, with small amounts of liquid included. That means, however, that existing battery producers can use their equipment to make Factorial's products.

The company will produce batteries for its "high-spec" customers at a plant in Korea, says CEO Siyu Huang. Those include defense applications that are less price-sensitive.

Solid-state batteries are still expensive, but that's partly because there is no scale manufacturing yet.

The SPAC merger valued the company at about $1.3 billion. The market value is closer to $1.7 billion at today's prices. QuantumScape, for comparison, is worth about $4.8 billion.

The merger provided Factorial with more than $100 million in development capital. Some of that will be used to build capacity for high-spec customers.

Write to Al Root at allen.root@dowjones.com

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June 08, 2026 13:24 ET (17:24 GMT)

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