China promotes electric vehicles toward a five-minute charging era

Electric vehicle manufacturers are racing to develop the fastest battery chargers to gain a competitive edge, and Chinese producers are once again taking the lead. One of the biggest complaints consumers have about electric vehicles is that charging them takes too long compared with fueling a conventional internal combustion engine car. This has prompted several electric vehicle manufacturers to heavily invest in charging technology R&D over the past decade. Some electric vehicle makers now believe they may have found the solution—ultra-fast chargers.

In 2022, Chinese automaker XPeng introduced its S4 ultra-fast charging technology, calling it a five-minute charge for its G9 SUV that delivers 210 kilometers of range, and since then the race to develop the most effective ultra-fast chargers has been on.

This March, BYD, the fastest-growing electric vehicle maker in China, announced that its latest “flash charging” charger can deliver up to 1.5 megawatts of power—about four times the power of the existing “ultra-fast” 350 kW systems in the United States. Tests show that BYD’s batteries can be charged from 10% to 70% in just five minutes, and from 10% to 97% in about nine minutes.

This means drivers may be able to get up to 600 miles of range in a time slightly longer than what it takes to fill up a tank of gas. BYD CEO Wang Chuanfu said it’s advisable to limit charging to 97%, because the remaining 3% can be generated through regenerative braking.

BYD is able to pull off this feat thanks to its strong control over the entire manufacturing process of electric vehicles, including the vehicle, battery cells, and charging hardware. The company moved from lithium iron phosphate technology to lithium manganese iron phosphate technology, which increases energy density by about 5% while still maintaining stability under high-current loads. The company needs to change every component of the battery to achieve ultra-fast charging, including electrodes, electrolyte, and separators—components that can now withstand the strong currents of 1.5 megawatts of charging without overheating or performance degradation.

The technology is expected to be installed on the BYD Denza Z9GT, which will be unveiled in Paris in April. BYD plans to install more than 16,000 new charging piles in China by the end of this year, and about 2,000 in Europe. Each charging station will be equipped with a stationary energy storage battery to buffer grid demand and offset possible load peaks that could overwhelm infrastructure. Although the technology has produced impressive results in the lab, it still needs to be used in real-world conditions to verify whether the chargers can achieve the performance BYD claims.

Other Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers are also moving quickly to catch up with BYD, and have been developing their own ultra-fast charging technologies. Chinese automaker Zeekr last April showcased a fully liquid-cooled ultra-fast charging pile, which is said to deliver up to 1.2 megawatts of power per charging gun. However, it’s currently unclear whether the company has already developed electric vehicles that are compatible with this new charger.

CATL in China has rolled out multiple battery technologies, including its second-generation Shenxing battery. In 2021, the company delivered the world’s first sodium-ion battery, with promising prospects because sodium is both cheaper and has abundant reserves. The next-generation battery is reportedly capable of providing 1.3 megawatts of peak charging power, delivering about 2.5 kilometers of range for every second of charging.

Meanwhile, Huawei launched a 1.5 megawatt fast-charging system in April last year. The company believes that by charging with two charging guns at the same time, it can fully charge a 300 kWh battery in about 15 minutes. Huawei is expected to make its heavy electric trucks compatible with these ultra-fast chargers.

The United States is also racing to develop ultra-fast charging technology. While no U.S. company has yet achieved five-minute charging, several firms have lowered battery prices and increased electric vehicle range. For example, General Motors will introduce a lithium manganese nickel-rich battery in 2025—produced in collaboration with LG Energy Solution—and it will begin being used in its vehicles in 2028. The low cost of certain parts of the battery means General Motors can reduce battery prices without sacrificing performance or lifespan.

At the same time, other companies are exploring alternative charging methods to strengthen competitiveness, such as wireless charging. Its goal is to create a technology that allows charging when a car is parked on a special charging pad. Research suggests the technology is highly appealing to consumers. Although wireless charging is still in the early stages of development, it could become a reality within a few years as long as it receives the necessary government support and a favorable regulatory framework.

As China takes the lead in the global electric vehicle manufacturing industry, multiple Chinese companies are meeting the challenge by continuously breaking records in battery technology and other electric vehicle technologies. Meanwhile, companies like BYD are working to reduce the cost of electric vehicles, making them increasingly popular with consumers.