CATL claims 10–70% charge in 5 minutes
- CATL said on April 21 its third-generation Shenxing battery can charge from 10% to 70% in five minutes, ahead of Beijing’s auto show. - The company’s headline demo went further: 10% to 98% in 6 minutes 27 seconds, and less than 10 minutes from 20% to 98% at -30C. - The push comes as suppliers like CATL and Huawei take bigger roles in China’s EV race. (reuters.com)
An electric-car battery stores energy like a tank stores fuel. Fast charging is the problem of getting that energy in quickly without overheating the cells or damaging them. (catl.com) CATL said on April 21 that its third-generation Shenxing battery can charge from 10% to 70% in five minutes. The company made the announcement days before the 2026 Beijing auto show. (carnewschina.com) (scmp.com) CATL’s published figures were more detailed than the headline. It said the pack could go from 10% to 80% in 3 minutes 44 seconds and from 10% to 98% in 6 minutes 27 seconds. (carnewschina.com) (electrek.co) Cold weather is where charging usually slows down. CATL said the same battery could charge from 20% to 98% in under 10 minutes at -30 degrees Celsius. (chosun.com) (carnewschina.com) The battery chemistry here is lithium iron phosphate, or LFP. It is generally cheaper and safer than nickel-rich packs, but it has trailed premium batteries on charging speed and energy density. (scmp.com) (catl.com) CATL said Shenxing’s peak charging rate is 12C, a measure of how fast a battery can be filled relative to its capacity. The company also said it cut internal resistance to 0.25 milliohms and expanded the cooling area to manage heat. (catl.com) (carnewschina.com) The charging claim also depends on the charger, not just the battery. CATL paired the battery push with megawatt-class charging, while Huawei used the Beijing show to promote 1,500-kilowatt charging hardware and solar-storage-charging systems. (carnewschina.com) (reuters.com) That supplier push is part of the story in Beijing. Reuters reported that battery and software groups including CATL and Huawei drew unusual attention as automakers tried to close technology gaps with Chinese electric-vehicle leaders. (reuters.com) CATL is not alone in making five-minute charging claims. BYD said at the same show that its updated Blade battery could go from 10% to 70% in five minutes using a 1,500-kilowatt flash charger. (carplus.my) The immediate question is not whether a five-minute demo is possible. It is how quickly carmakers can ship vehicles, chargers and grid connections that let drivers see anything close to those numbers outside a show floor. (reuters.com) (scmp.com)
