CATL is also betting on battery swap stations in the Chinese market

CATL, the world’s largest supplier of battery cells, continues to move forward in support of electric mobility, this time announcing two new swappable battery packs and the construction of a thousand stations over the coming year in its home market for the rapid exchange of these batteries.

According to the Chinese company itself, its current push for swappable batteries is justified by its estimate that one third of electric vehicles will use this type of battery in the Chinese market by 2030.

CATL has used the name Choco-SEB –Swapping Electric Blocks– for these batteries, differentiating between two distinct models, 20# and 25#, according to their dimensions. The first, capable of offering a CLTC range of up to 500 km, is intended for A0-class vehicles, which in the Chinese market corresponds to cars with a wheelbase of between 2.2 and 2.3 metres. The second is suitable for class A and B vehicles -with a wheelbase of up to 2.9 metres- and promises a range of up to 600 kilometres under the same homologation cycle. Both batteries not only resemble chocolate bars in shape -hence their name- but also support both LFP and NMC chemistries, thereby offering greater flexibility.

During the presentation of these new batteries, Robin Zheng, the company’s current CEO, did not hesitate to highlight the importance of standardising swappable batteries, with the aim of simplifying the exchange process and making it accessible to a wider range of electric vehicles.

The largest battery swap station network in the world

As we mentioned at the beginning of this article, CATL’s strategy to drive the battery swapping sector for electric vehicles involves building a thousand rapid-swap stations over the coming year. The Chinese company hopes this step will serve as an incentive for other partners to open up to 10,000 of these stations. In this way, the ultimate goal is to establish a network of 30,000 swap stations in the Chinese market, although no date has been specified for reaching this target.

Finally, CATL has also announced that in 2025 ten electric models from different manufacturers compatible with its battery swapping system will reach the local market, including the Changan Oshan 520, the GAC Aion S and the Hongqi E-QM5, among others.