CATL’s Shenxing LFP battery pushes beyond 1,000 km boundary

CATL, the world’s biggest battery maker, has once again pushed back frontiers by presenting the newest generation of its Shenxing LFP battery. This battery offers EV ranges of more than 1,000 km and can charge 600 km in only ten minutes. The first generation launched last year provides a 700 km range and 400 km in ten minutes.

Such fast-evolving figures prove that when offered at affordable prices, this ‘cheaper’ LFP battery should eliminate the range anxiety that keeps most current car owners from switching to an electric car.

Energy density of 205 Wh/kg

The Chinese battery maker claims the newest Shenxing Plus battery has an energy density of 205 Wh/kg, comparable with many NMC (nickel-manganese-cobalt) batteries currently mounted in more premium EVs to offer longer ranges without adding weight. So far, rival BYD’s popular blade battery only achieves 190 Wh/kg.

The LFP (lithium-ferro-phosphate) batteries are less prone to fire hazards and cheaper to produce. Still, they couldn’t compete in ranges offered and fast charging, especially at low temperatures. That seems to be becoming a thing of the past.

4C charging

The new Shenxing Plus battery is capable of so-called 4C charging. The C-rate is the unit used to measure the speed at which a battery is fully charged or discharged. Charging at a C-rate of 1C means the battery is charged from 0 to 100% in 1 hour. A 4C rate is four times faster, with CATL claiming to be able to add 1 km in 1 second.

How did they do it? CATL uses in-house-developed 3D honeycomb material to improve the anode’s energy density and control the expansion of the charging and discharging volume. This is combined with its CTB 3.0 (cell-to-body) technology to pack more cells into a limited volume.

Devine speed

It is a further improvement of the first-generation Shenxing Plus battery, which means something like ‘Devine Speed’ in Chinese, introduced last August. It offers economical fast charging of 400 kilometers of extra range in only ten minutes and a total range of 700 km. The ranges are according to ‘Chinese’ standards (CLTC), meaning they tend to be up to 20% more optimistic than European WLTC standards.

So far, these Shenxing batteries are offered in five Chinese models by carmakers Avatr, Neta, Cher, BAIC BJEV, and Swedish-Chinese Zeekr (for its 001). But by this year’s end, CATL claims it could be as many as 50 models.

CATL is by far the world’s biggest battery supplier for EVS, with a 36.8% market share in 2023, nearly 21% ahead of its nearest competitor, BYD. It delivers its cheaper LFP batteries for several Eastern and Western EVs, including Tesla, Ford, BMW, Toyota, Kia, Mercedes-Benz, and Toyota.