CATL (Contemporary Amperex Technology), the No. 1 electric vehicle battery company, unveiled a slew of next-generation EV battery technologies that deliver both ultrafast charging and ultra-long range ahead of the Beijing auto show opening on the 24th. A wave of new products debuted, from a new lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery that can fully charge in 10 minutes even in extreme subzero conditions to a high-energy nickel cobalt manganese (NCM) battery capable of up to 1,500 km of range.
◇ Reining in battery heat and boosting cooling... ultrafast charging in 6 minutes
CATL held its Super Tech Day at 7 p.m. on the 21st (local time) at the China National Convention Center in Beijing. The hottest reaction at the venue was for the third-generation "Shenxing" battery. The new Shenxing is an LFP-based ultrafast-charging battery that takes just 6 minutes 27 seconds to go from 10% to 98%. That speed surpasses the "9-minute full charge" BYD released last month.
It takes 1 minute to charge from 10% to 35%, and 3 minutes 44 seconds to reach 80%. When the announcement noted it takes less than 10 minutes to charge from 20% to 98% at minus 30 degrees Celsius, the audience broke into applause and cheers. This ultrafast charging feature comes standard on the key new batteries announced that day.
Gao Huan, CATL's chief technology officer, said, "The challenge with ultrafast charging is not speed but heat generation." When battery temperature rises by 10 degrees, chemical reactions inside roughly double, sharply reducing battery life. Gao said the company solved this through ▲ reduced heat generation ▲ enhanced cooling ▲ precise temperature control.
First, to minimize heat generation, CATL cut internal resistance to as low as 0.25 mΩ, the industry's lowest, which is 50% below the industry average. For cooling, the company quadrupled the cooling area beyond the conventional approach of cooling only the bottom of the battery. It also applied a new technology for precise, cell-level cooling, improving cooling efficiency by 20%. In addition, it improved temperature measurement accuracy to within 1 degree, enabling more precise control of battery status. As a result, the company said battery performance can remain above 90% even after 1,000 ultrafast charging cycles.
◇ Driving the "Incheon–Beijing" distance on a single charge
The event also unveiled another new product, the third-generation "Qilin" battery. Qilin is an NCM battery with high energy density, notable for long range. On a single charge, a sedan can travel 1,500 km and a sport utility vehicle (SUV) can go more than 1,000 km. By comparison, the flight distance from Incheon to Beijing is under 1,000 km, underscoring how far that is. Typical EV range is around 400–600 km.
The new Qilin in particular weighs 625 kg, making it 255 kg lighter than an LFP battery with the same performance. As a result, performance, durability, and battery efficiency improved markedly. Zero-to-100 kph dropped by 0.6 seconds; emergency evasion capability improved by up to 25%; and braking distance from 100 kph shortened by 1.44 meters, reducing accident risk by 8–10%.
Component life and tire life increased by 40% and 30%, respectively, while energy consumption fell 6%. At the same time, output performance more than doubled from 1.33 MW to 3 MW. The battery volume also shrank by 112 liters, expanding cabin space. That's enough room for three additional 20-inch carry-on suitcases. Headroom increased by 18 mm.
◇ Extending the lineup to hybrids and sodium...
CATL also unveiled the "Xiaoyao" hybrid battery and its next-generation sodium-ion battery. Hybrids have been limited in pure electric range because the underbody must house the battery, engine, and fuel tank, leaving insufficient room for battery capacity. The second-generation Xiaoyao battery integrates LFP and NCM chemistries to extend pure electric range up to 600 km. Gao said, "In this case, the engine intervention rate in a hybrid will be under 1%."
Sodium-ion batteries use sodium ions instead of lithium to lower cost and improve supply stability. They are mainly used in low-cost EVs, small cars, and energy storage systems (ESS). While their lower energy density means relatively shorter range, CATL increased sodium-ion battery energy density by 50% to develop a product viable for commercialization. Recently, it resolved moisture, bubble, and electrode adhesion issues arising during production to secure mass-production technology. Full-scale mass production will begin in the fourth quarter of this year.
Meanwhile, the event also presented recent results. As of February this year, the number of EVs equipped with CATL batteries surpassed 25.84 million. In the first quarter, the company's market share in China reached 47.7%. As of March, CATL had entered more than 150 countries and regions, supplying batteries to 176 brands and 529 models. CEO Zeng Yuqun said, "research and development is not an expense but the capability to break through industry cycles," adding, "We will continue to enhance battery performance and safety through technological innovation."