| Thanks for reading Hyperdrive, Bloomberg's newsletter on the future of the auto world. Read today's featured story in full online here. CATL teased its latest innovations Monday in Shanghai, a multi-hour event that took place in a converted warehouse on the outskirts of China's financial capital. Hundreds of media, influencers and industry watchers crowded in to hear from CTO Gao Huan and catch glimpses of billionaire founder and chairman, Robin Zeng. Zeng only took to the stage near the end of the Tech Day event to promise it would become an annual occurrence. One of the main products CATL talked about was an upgraded version of its Shenxing battery, a cell it says can now offer 520 kilometers (323 miles) of range from just five minutes of charging time. BYD recently launched a system it says can charge a vehicle for 400 kilometers in about the same time.  CATL Founder and Chairman Robin Zeng. Photographer: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg CATL batteries can already be found in a wide range of automakers' EVs. Tesla is one of its top customers and it has a technology licensing agreement with Ford. Its hold on the world's market for EV batteries is difficult to overstate — CATL commands a share of around 38.2%, according to SNE Research. Its nearest competitor, BYD, is at 16.9%. Also a popular topic at Monday's event, taking place a few days ahead of China's annual premier auto show, were sodium-ion batteries. CATL said its sodium-ion cell, called Naxtra, is ready for commercialization and has been tested under a number of extreme circumstances, including very cold weather and fire. Even after being placed in an ice chamber with a temperature of minus 40 degrees Celsius, Naxtra had zero power degradation, executives said. Naxtra should give a hybrid vehicle around 200 kilometers of range, stretching to 500 kilometers for an EV.  A CATL sodium-ion battery. Photographer: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg Sodium-ion batteries offer several advantages, including being more cost-effective due to the abundance and lower price of sodium compared to lithium. They also have higher safety and stability, considering sodium is less reactive, reducing the risk of fire hazards. Company executives believe sodium-ion could eventually take up half of the market share that's currently dominated by lithium, iron and phosphate batteries led by the likes of CATL and BYD. CATL also unveiled a range of dual-power batteries that can offer a maximum 1,500-kilometer range on a charge. CATL said it's able to achieve such a range using a regular super-fast charging battery cell and a separate auxiliary cell, side-by-side, for upgraded performance. Speaking at a press conference later after the main event had wrapped, executives threw parting shots at rivals and spoke about the pricing wars that are chipping away at revenue. The "rat race" in the battery price war isn't healthy but a rat race is needed in terms of "development of the product," said Ouyang Chuying, co-president of CATL's research and development division. "We hope the national standard can be very high and get rid of products that are poor quality." — By Danny Lee  Horse Powertrain's future hybrid concept. Source: Horse Powertrain The powertrain venture majority-owned by Geely and Renault will show up to this week's Shanghai auto show with a concept aimed at car buyers still reluctant to go fully electric. Horse Powertrain will tout what it's calling Future Hybrid Concept — an engine, electric motor and transmission bundled together in a package compact enough to replace the drive unit of a battery-electric vehicle. The joint venture between Geely, Renault and Saudi Aramco will offer the product to carmakers as a way to hybridize their EVs without having to develop new platforms or production lines. | 
No comments:
Post a Comment