Imagine a world where batteries last longer than the products they power.

Moving one step closer to such a possibility, researchers at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Canada, along with Tesla’s advanced battery research group, have shared details of a new nickel-based battery that could last an extremely long time under the right conditions. Battery Still, one of the paper’s authors is Jeff Dahn, considered one of the pioneers of the lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery.

“While this study shows promise for the development of batteries that can last a century,” Gavin Harper, Critical Materials Research Fellow at the Birmingham Centre for Strategic Elements & Critical Materials at the University of Birmingham, told Lifewire via email, “we will only be able to maximize the environmental benefits that can come from this technology if we can find applications that make use of a battery over its century-long lifespan.”

The durability of a product, Harper explained, is not just a function of how long it lasts. An equally important aspect is how attractive it remains to people throughout its life cycle. To bolster his argument, Harper noted that it is rare to see a hundred-year-old vehicle on the road.