Modular Battery Swapping for Heavy-duty Trucks

This morning, I came across an intriguing piece of news in the electric vehicle industry. Shanghai Qiyuan Core Power recently concluded a successful RMB 1.5 billion Series B equity financing round. Their primary focus lies in providing a battery replacement solution for heavy-duty trucks, essentially creating a shared power bank network for these vehicles. Currently, they’ve established over 100 charging and swapping stations for heavy-duty trucks across 31 provinces and municipalities in China, accommodating more than 200 battery-swapping heavy-duty trucks available on the market. This venture is a collaborative effort with CATL, a prominent battery manufacturer.

Heavy-duty trucks are notorious for their significant contribution to energy consumption and carbon emissions, accounting for half of total vehicle emissions. To put it in perspective, the carbon dioxide emissions from a single 49-ton diesel heavy truck are equivalent to those produced by 40 cars. According to Lin Zhongqin, former president of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, as of the end of 2021, China had 302 million cars, with heavy trucks making up a mere 2.8% of the total vehicle count at 8.5 million units. Surprisingly, these heavy trucks are responsible for a staggering 47% of total vehicle emissions. The potential for swift battery replacement presents an exciting opportunity to usher in a truly green and low-carbon era for electric heavy-duty trucks.

Modular Product Thinking

I vividly recall Google’s ambitious project, Project ARA, which aimed to create a modular mobile phone. With ARA, users could freely assemble their phones, even customizing battery modules. Google’s vision was to leverage modularity to craft highly personalized phones, both in terms of configuration and appearance, with the added benefits of cost reduction and extended device lifespan. Google wasn’t alone in its pursuit of modular solutions; Motorola and LG also ventured into the world of modular phones during that period. Although the modular mobile phone path wasn’t pursued further due to challenges like cost, waterproofing, and user experience, it may have inadvertently laid the groundwork for the emergence of modular automotive battery modules today.

Interesting Facts About the Electric Vehicle Batteries

The notion of battery swapping for electric vehicles was initially introduced by entrepreneur Shai Agassi. In 2007, Agassi founded Better Place in Israel, collaborating with Renault to pioneer an electric car equipped with interchangeable batteries. They established over 40 automated battery swap stations in Israel and Denmark. Regrettably, due to a lack of market demand for electric vehicles at the time, this trailblazing company couldn’t penetrate the market and eventually declared bankruptcy in 2013.

Simultaneously, in 2013, Tesla introduced battery-swapping technology that could complete the process in just 93 seconds, though it remained in the developmental stage. The exorbitant cost of a single battery replacement, ranging from $60 to $80, coupled with the requirement to return the swapped battery, resulted in a poor user experience, leading to consumer and market disapproval. In North America, electric vehicles still constituted a small portion of total vehicle sales, accounting for less than 10%. Consequently, the utilization of battery swap stations fell short of expectations due to high costs, and the economic viability of battery swapping for electric vehicles failed to take hold in the United States. Tesla eventually abandoned battery replacement in favor of fast charging.

Charging vs. Battery Swapping

In the new energy vehicle market, most car companies prefer charging for convenience and cost control. Despite the increasing charging power of electric vehicles, fast charging still requires several minutes to complete, which is not efficient enough. 

In contrast, the battery-swapping mode boasts two primary advantages. 

Firstly, it offers rapid energy replenishment, with CATL’s innovative chocolate battery replacement block claiming to replace a battery block in just one minute. These batteries can be individually replaced, each providing 200 kilometers of battery life. 

Secondly, the power swapping mode can significantly conserve site space. Charging a vehicle requires a dedicated parking space, taking at least several minutes, and leading to substantial space wastage. In contrast, the battery replacement mode allows for the removal and centralized charging of batteries, resulting in significant space savings.

CATL’s Modular Battery: “Chocolate Battery Exchange Block”

CATL, a global battery manufacturer, introduced the “EVOGO” battery swap brand in 2022, specializing in small modular battery swap technology. Named the “Chocolate Battery Swap Block,” this battery can be assembled like pieces of chocolate and replaced as needed, offering a compact size compared to whole-battery swapping solutions. Car owners can opt for recharging upon reaching their destination, providing a cost-effective, speedy, and improved user experience.

The announcement reveals that “EVOGO” has achieved mass production and will promote the battery swap mode using this solution. Ningde Times states that a standard battery swap station only requires around three parking spaces and can store 48 battery swap blocks, sufficient for at least 16 vehicles to exchange batteries. In approximately 50 minutes, the batteries of 16 vehicles can be completely replaced, significantly enhancing efficiency.

The Battery Swapping in Europe

In Europe, Stellantis is betting on the future of battery swapping as well. They’ve forged a partnership with American battery swap company Ample. Commencing in 2024, the battery swap technology will be introduced to the Fiat 500e shared fleet in Madrid, Spain. This collaboration has the potential to expand its scope to include electric private cars in Europe and the United States down the road. Stellantis adopts a similar “chocolate battery exchange” system, allowing users to opt for one, two, or three battery replacements.

Of course, the viability of this approach hinges on battery standardization, but Ample asserts that its batteries are universally compatible with any electric vehicle. As of now, Ample has successfully deployed 12 power swap stations in the San Francisco Bay Area, California, and 4 power swap stations in Madrid. Additionally, 9 more power swap stations are in the planning or construction phase.

The Future of Electric Vehicle Charging

In my view, while the benefits of “chocolate swapping blocks” are undeniable, they are just one piece of the puzzle. Whether it’s the modular batteries championed by CATL, Stellantis, and Ample, NIO’s integrated battery approach for electric vehicles, or Tesla’s supercharging stations, the future of electric vehicle power solutions will likely be a harmonious blend of various technologies, each complementing the other.

Extended Readings

https://36kr.com/p/2071411744668545

https://company.stcn.com/gsxw/202209/t20220918_4865348.html

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