The world’s first 6C fast-charging lithium iron phosphate battery will be mass-produced and installed on vehicles next year.
On September 25, SAIC-GM’s official Weibo account announced that it and CATL (300750.SZ) jointly launched the industry’s first 6C ultra-fast charging lithium iron phosphate battery, which can increase the battery life by more than 200 kilometers after charging for 5 minutes.
C refers to the battery charging rate, and 6C means that the battery can be fully charged in one-sixth of an hour, that is, 10 minutes. This fast-charging battery uses lithium iron phosphate positive electrode material, which is the most mainstream technical route for domestic power batteries.
SAIC-GM did not disclose the first model of this fast-charging battery and the range of this model. CATL has not yet responded to the relevant information of this power battery.
Power batteries usually adopt the assembly mode of battery cell-module-battery pack. Jiemian News learned from an insider that the battery cell part of this battery is jointly developed by SAIC-GM and CATL, and the design of the battery module to the whole pack is handled by Pan Asia Automotive Technology Center (hereinafter referred to as Pan Asia). Pan Asia is an automotive design and development center jointly established by General Motors (China) and SAIC Group.
The insider said that SAIC-GM and CATL are preparing to start mass production of this battery, and plan to install it on a pure electric vehicle next year. CATL will be responsible for the production of the battery cell, and the rest of the production and assembly of the battery pack will be completed by SAIC-GM’s Autonext Super Factory.
SAIC-GM has built two Autonext Super Factories in Shanghai and Wuhan. The factory produces core components such as batteries and electric drives based on the Autonext electric vehicle platform for SAIC-GM’s three major brands, Buick, Chevrolet and Cadillac.
The new energy vehicle fast charging technology that “makes charging as fast as refueling” is the core of the current power battery competition.
CATL released the industry’s first lithium iron phosphate 4C supercharger last year and launched its upgraded version, the Shenxing PLUS, this year. The company’s multiple Tianxing batteries for commercial vehicles this year also use 4C supercharger as a major selling point.
Before the release of the Shenxing battery series, 4C fast-charging batteries were mainly ternary batteries, which were expensive. In the domestic market, ternary batteries are another power battery technology route second only to lithium iron phosphate, and many battery companies have launched ternary batteries that support 6C fast charging.
CATL previously revealed that the cost of Shenxing batteries has hardly increased compared to traditional lithium iron phosphate batteries, and the price will not change much.
CATL’s launch of the lithium iron phosphate 4C supercharger is believed to be aimed at competing with BYD (002594.SZ) in the lithium iron phosphate market. BYD’s power battery installation mainly comes from its self-produced new energy vehicles, which are equipped with self-produced blade batteries, while CATL’s power batteries are mainly supplied to BYD’s competitors.
In the domestic lithium iron phosphate power battery market, BYD and CATL occupy the top two positions. Last year, BYD’s market share was 40.38%, surpassing CATL’s market share of 34.01%. In the first eight months of this year, CATL’s market share in domestic lithium iron phosphate surpassed BYD, with a market share difference of three percentage points.
36Kr reported in June this year that BYD is also planning to launch fast-charging battery products, and its second-generation blade battery may be launched in the second half of the year. It is also developing 6C fast-charging batteries.
During the World Power Battery Conference held this month, BYD Battery CTO Sun Huajun revealed that blade batteries that support 4C fast charging have been mass-produced.
