Chinese technology giant Huawei has planned to soon unveil a megawatt charging system expected to provide commercial vehicles with impressive energy efficiency and fast charging, featuring a potential for a higher charge rate of 1,500 kilowatts (kW) compared with a recent breakthrough by BYD.
The announcement was made by Hou Jinlong, president of Huawei’s digital power business unit, at an annual forum organized by the EV100 think tank in Beijing on March 29. Hou added the company has co-developed more than 20 electric truck models with automakers using its ultra-fast charging technology.
Why it matters: The news is the latest example of Chinese auto and tech companies testing the limit when it comes to electric vehicle charging speed and looking to increase the availability of power infrastructure, which could help drive EV adoption, especially in the commercial vehicle segment.
- China’s sales of new energy commercial vehicles reached 532,000 units last year, taking up less than 20% of the total commercial car sales volume. Meanwhile, nearly half of all passenger vehicles sold in China were new energy vehicles, which refer to all-electrics and plug-in hybrids, according to figures from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.
Details: Hou said that Huawei’s upcoming ultra-fast charger will be capable of peak charging speeds of 1,500 kW, or 1.5 MW, and can plug into a 2,400 amp circuit, enabling a 400 kilowatt-hour (kWh) battery pack to be fully replenished in 20 minutes.
- Megawatt EV charging will be the key to pushing the electrification of commercial truck fleets in various scenarios, which have faced headwinds due to issues such as slow charging, according to Hou.
- Hou added that a number of Huawei’s ultra-fast charging stations have been installed with energy storage units and solar photovoltaic systems to prevent extra pressure on power grid capacity.
- On the same day, Huawei said on Chinese microblogging platform Weibo that it will hold a press conference about the technology on April 22.
Context: BYD kicked off a supercharging race in China two weeks ago when the EV giant said its upcoming premium models are capable of charging at 1,000 kW. Chairman Wang Chuanfu said it was the first company in the industry that made the unit of megawatt (charge) a reality on charging power, Reuters reported. Tesla plans to open its V4 Supercharger stations this year which will support up to 1.2MW charging for its Semi heavy-duty trucks.
- Geely-affiliated Zeekr later followed suit, saying (in Chinese) its new EV charger will support 1.2 MW of power, with plans to showcase the technology at the upcoming Auto Shanghai Show 2025 later this month.
- Some other companies, such as CATL, the world’s top battery maker, however, have reservations about such efforts, saying that the pursuit of ultra-fast charging should not be at the cost of the reliability and life span of EV batteries.
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