CATL is working with Tesla on battery technologies, particularly new electrochemical structures for faster charging, the Chinese battery maker's chairman said.
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Chinese power battery giant CATL (SHE: 300750) is working with Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) to develop faster-charging batteries, as charging speed becomes one of the key determinants of the experience of an electric vehicle (EV) model.
CATL is working with Tesla on battery technologies, in particular new electrochemical structures, to allow for faster charging, Robin Zeng, chairman of the Chinese battery maker, said in an interview with Bloomberg in Hong Kong today.
The report didn't say anything more about the battery, but said Zeng confirmed that CATL is supplying machinery to Tesla's Nevada factory.
Bloomberg reported last month that Tesla plans to expand battery production in Nevada by opening a small factory using idle CATL equipment.
On February 29, Chinese media outlet The Paper cited an industry source as saying CATL is in developmental validation with Tesla on the M3P battery, with the exact timing of carrying not yet clear.
Zeng mentioned the M3P battery in a February 2022 roadshow, sparking discussion about the new battery.
On July 22, 2022, CATL's chief scientist Wu Kai said in a presentation at a battery conference that the company's M3P battery had been mass-produced and would be put into service in 2023.
M3P batteries are CATL's batteries based on a new material system with higher energy density than lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries and lower cost than ternary batteries, Wu said at the time.
The M3P battery would primarily target the EV market with a range of more than 700 kilometers, according to Wu, who did not mention the battery's charging speed.
On August 16, 2023, CATL unveiled the Shenxing Superfast Charging Battery, which it said was the world's first LFP battery to support 4C charging.
C refers to the charging multiplier of the battery, and 4C means that the battery can theoretically be fully charged in a quarter of an hour.
The Shenxing battery can get a 400-kilometer range on a 10-minute charge, CATL said in the launch event.
In China, local EV makers are chasing faster charging speeds.
Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI) launched its first battery electric vehicle (BEV) model, the Li Mega MPV (Multi-Purpose Vehicle), on March 1, which it said is powered by the Qilin Battery jointly developed with CATL and supports 5C charging.
The Li Mega can get a 500-km range on a 12-minute charge, Li Auto said at the time.
CATL launched the Qilin Battery on June 23, 2022, which is the company's innovation in battery construction that is compatible with lithium ternary chemistry and LFP chemistry.
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