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As fast as filling up with petrol – that’s the claim from Chinese car maker BYD after launching game-changing electric car rapid charging tech.
Chinese car maker BYD has unveiled an ultra-fast electric car charging system it says will make replenishing a battery as quick as filling up with a tank of petrol.
BYD announced the ‘Super e-Platform’ is capable of ‘flash charging’ at speeds of up to 1000kW – 1 megawatt – making it twice as fast as the latest 500kW supercharger capability offered by arch-rival electric car maker Tesla.
It also beats any other car maker’s capability, making it the fastest charging battery in the world.
The technology, according to BYD, means a five-minute recharge could fill a completely flat battery to a full 600km driving range – 2km of range every second – the same amount of time it takes to stop and fill up an average petrol-powered vehicle.
BYD said the faster charging comes from enabling faster ion transfer in the electrolyte and less resistance through the battery’s diaphragm.
To facilitate the new fast charging capability, BYD founder Wang Chuanfu – live-streaming the announcement from company headquarters – said the car maker will install 4000 flash chargers across China.
It will also create nearby electricity storage to enable the flash charging capability even in times of high energy demand.
“In order to completely solve our users’ charging anxiety, we have been pursuing a goal to make the charging time of electric vehicles as short as the refuelling time of petrol vehicles,” Wang said.
“This is the first time in the industry that the unit of megawatt has been achieved on charging power.”
The two new BYD models unveiled with the flash charging tech are the Han L sedan and Tang L SUV – the first to use the Super e-Platform – neither of which are confirmed or expected to be offered in Australian showrooms.
BYD is the world’s second-largest battery maker, second only to CATL (Contemporary Amperex Technology Company Limited) – which supplies brands including Tesla – giving it a key advantage in electric car development.
The car maker – which returned to Australian showrooms in 2021 – is set to introduce its next generation Blade 2 lithium-ion phosphate (LFP) batteries with as much as 1000km on a single charge, enabling a Sydney-to-Melbourne journey without needing a stop.
Flash charging could also entice buyers with a short, single stop – as many petrol vehicles demand – on a similar-length journey.
BYD is also targeting a 15 per cent cost reduction for its Blade 2 batteries, with the battery pack the single biggest component cost of producing an electric vehicle.
Intense competition in battery technology has also seen car makers – including Toyota, Honda and Mercedes-Benz – ferociously working on solid-state and semi-solid-state batteries with claims of up to 1200km range on a single charge.
More details on BYD’s new charging system – and latest battery tech – are expected at the launch of the Han L sedan and Tang L SUV in April 2025.
