GM will create a prototype Ultium battery pack for the US military

General Motors will create a battery pack prototype for the Department of Defense to test and study via its GM Defense division. The Defense Innovation Unit of the agency is looking for a scalable design that may be employed in electric versions of tactical military vehicles.

The battery pack will be built on GM’s Ultium architecture, which is also used to power the automaker’s electric cars. Ultium is marketed as a modular and scalable system that can be tailored to varied demands due to the sort of battery cells it utilizes, thus it may just fit the bill for the military.

According to GM, the military seeks a light- to heavy-duty EV for usage in garrison and operational areas to minimize the consumption of fossil fuels. As a consequence, the military’s carbon footprint should be reduced.

This is not GM Defense’s first collaboration with the military. In July, the business agreed to provide an electric Hummer for testing to the US Army. GM Defense President Steve Dumont said last year that the corporation will construct an electric military vehicle prototype based on the Hummer EV.