With ambitious plans that could reshape the electric vehicle (EV) landscape in China, CATL has unveiled its a new goal to expand its battery-swapping network across the nation.

CATL’s Chief Technology Officer, Gao Huan, announced at the 2024 World Power Battery Conference in Yibin, China, that the company aims to establish a total of 10,000 battery swapping stations. This long-term goal is accompanied by a series of interim targets with aiming for over 500 stations across 50 cities by 2025, more than 1,500 stations covering 70 cities by 2026, and 3,000 stations operational by 2027.

CATL currently operates around 2,500 battery-swapping stations in China. The company entered the battery swapping market in January 2022 with the launch of its EVOGO brand, which offers the innovative Choco-SEB (swapping electric block) battery blocks. This technology allows EVs to use one or more blocks to meet different range requirements.

The EVOGO service is already available in several Chinese cities including Xiamen, Fuzhou, Guiyang, and Hefei. Xiamen currently hosts the highest number of CATL battery swap stations at 12.

CATL’s expansion plans position it as a major player in the battery swapping space, second only to NIO, which had 2,500 stations as of September 1, 2024. The battery-swapping model offers several advantages including reduced upfront costs for EV buyers who don’t need to purchase the battery outright.

Furthermore, CATL has been actively forming partnerships to accelerate its battery-swapping ambitions including a joint venture with DiDi to collaborate on station setup and model promotion and cooperation agreements with GAC Aion and BAIC Group to develop battery-swapping models and regional station networks.

Read More: CATL Unveils First-Ever EV Experience Center Featuring Nearly 100 EVs

These moves by CATL signal a growing interest in battery-swapping technology as a solution for EV charging infrastructure. As the network expands, the company’s plans could impact the Chinese EV market and potentially influence global trends in EV charging and battery technology.

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