BYD charging breakthrough is another sign of China's EV lead
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BYD cars lined up for sale in the UK. Photo: Anna Barclay/Getty Images
China continues to raise the bar on electric vehicles, with BYD unveiling a new EV platform that can be recharged about as fast as it takes refuel a gasoline car.
Why it matters: Making EV charging as painless as visiting a gas station is one less hurdle for consumers, and could help spur widespread EV adoption.
- It's also a further sign of the growing dominance of BYD, which sells both electric vehicles and hybrids, while onetime EV leader Tesla's fortunes wane, both in China and the rest of the world.
Driving the news: BYD's new battery and charging system can provide nearly 300 miles of driving range in 5 minutes, chairman and founder Wang Chuanfu said Monday, Bloomberg reported.
- The 1,000-Volt Super e-Platform will underpin BYD's next-generation vehicles, starting with the Han L sedan and Tang L SUV.
- BYD also said it would build more than 4,000 ultra-fast chargers across China to match the new EV platform.
Between the lines: The charging breakthrough, while promising, is light on specifics.
- It's not clear what type of battery chemistry is used to achieve such results.
- Also unknown is the battery size, or maximum sustained power levels during charging.
The big picture: What is clear, however, is that Chinese manufacturers are outpacing the U.S. and European Union on EV charging technology.
- "Tesla has definitely moved from leader to laggard in EV battery and charging technology at this point." said Matt Teske, founder and CEO of Chargeway, a startup aiming to simplify EV charging.
- Tesla's latest "V4" Superchargers offer 325kW power — a step in the right direction, Teske said — but Tesla vehicles need 800V battery tech in order to take full advantage of those faster chargers.
- Currently, Tesla's vehicles have a 400V system, which limits how fast they can accept electrons, no matter how fast the charging equipment.
- Competitors including Hyundai, Kia and Porsche have more advanced 800V systems, the fastest-available before BYD's 1,000V breakthrough.
The bottom line: Convenient, fast EV charging requires higher-voltage battery technology mated with chargers capable of sustained power delivery at maximum speeds.
- Not even China has cracked that problem yet, but BYD is getting closer.
