Slate has replaced the two nickel-manganese-cobalt battery options it announced for its electric pickup with a single lithium-iron-phosphate pack supplied by Gotion, a change that raises the truck's projected range and keeps its advertised starting price at $24,950 plus a $1,450 destination fee. The switch affects buyers of the Slate Truck, which Slate unveiled in April 2025 as a stripped-back electric pickup.
Under the original plan, the base truck was to use a 52.7kWh NMC pack from SK On with an estimated 150 miles of range, while a larger 84.3kWh pack was to deliver about 240 miles. The production truck instead carries a 65kWh LFP pack that Slate projects at 205 miles. Slate cautions that the 205-mile figure is an estimate based on an EPA test cycle and not a finalized EPA rating.
The change first surfaced in a June Detroit Free Press report citing an interview with Slate CEO Peter Faricy that described the base truck as using LFP. Slate CEO Chris Barman later told InsideEVs that a supplier the company had previously considered lacked the needed capacity and could not satisfy federal tax-credit rules restricting battery materials tied to certain China-linked entities. Gotion now builds the pack in Manteno, Illinois, roughly 90 miles from Slate's factory in Warsaw, Indiana, far closer than the SK On module supply planned from Commerce, Georgia, 710 miles away, which lowers logistics costs.
Slate had originally sought to qualify the truck for the federal clean-vehicle tax credit, which could have saved eligible buyers up to $7,500 but carried requirements for battery component and critical mineral origin. US-made NMC cells from SK On fit those rules better than an LFP supply chain heavily concentrated in China. The credit ended for vehicles acquired after September 30, 2025, removing one reason to design around the sourcing requirements. Slate has not disclosed what became of its earlier battery deal with SK On.
Barman told InsideEVs in 2026 that Slate was glad to offer more range while holding the price point it was targeting. The new box-shaped prismatic cells stack directly into the pack rather than using separate modules as the SK On setup did, making better use of the space beneath the truck. LFP is also cheaper because its cathode uses iron and phosphate instead of nickel, manganese and cobalt, and it generally tolerates more frequent charging to 100%, a convenience for a vehicle with 205 projected miles.
The chemistry carries trade-offs. LFP stores less energy for a given size and weight than NMC, and the extended-range version has been dropped because the new pack occupies all the battery space under the truck. Output falls from the originally announced 201 horsepower to 181 horsepower in the current Slate Truck, though Slate still claims an 8-second 0-to-60-mph run. The range gain also reflects aerodynamic and thermal improvements alongside the larger pack, and the battery and powertrain warranty is 10 years or 110,000 miles.
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