- BYD and CATL, engaged in a race to reduce charging times
- Fast charging dominated this year’s Beijing Auto Show
- Loading times of just 6.5 minutes are currently promoted.
This year’s Beijing Auto Show turned out to be the perfect opportunity for China to show off its automotive muscle, with 17 showrooms housing more than 1,500 vehicles and advances in the technology that powers them.
In fact, in the two years since the Beijing Auto Show (which alternates with Shanghai) was last held, a new convention center has been built next to the existing exhibition hall, an apt visual metaphor for China’s rapidly expanding auto industry.
With new cars comes new technology and the event also served as the perfect venue to showcase the latest technology in batteries and charging, with several companies competing to slash electric vehicle charging times to less than 10 minutes.
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Right now in the Western world, you’re lucky if you can complete a 10 to 80 percent charge in 30 minutes or less, but CATL recently showed off its Shenxing 3 EB battery pack that it said can reach 10 to 98 percent in 6.5 minutes.
BYD also has battery technology that can charge from 10 to 97 percent in just nine minutes, while even second-tier Chinese battery suppliers including CALB Group, EVE Energy and Sunwoda have introduced products capable of increasing power from 10 to 70 percent in less than 10 minutes, according to the South China Morning Post.
Analysis: All electric to give a push
It wasn’t just four-wheeled electric vehicles that received a charging boost at the Beijing Motor Show. Sunwoda also wants to apply its knowledge to electric bicycles, introducing a battery that charges from 10 to 80 percent in 20 minutes and lasts at least 2,000 cycles, according to its manufacturer.
This would effectively allow e-bike owners to take even long trips and then charge them at coffee stops, rather than waiting the several hours it typically takes today.
“The time needed to replenish power is perhaps the last frontier where electric vehicles have yet to completely surpass gasoline cars in China,” Li Xianyang (Sunwoda battery specialist) told the South China Morning Post. “So everyone has to compete on time.”
Whichever way you look at it, China appears to be light years ahead of the rest of the world when it comes to offering fast and innovative EV charging solutions.
In addition to its innovative megawatt charging points, it is also a provider of battery swapping technology, with domestic automaker Nio proving that a full swap takes three minutes with a live demonstration at the Beijing Auto Show.
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