China Pushes Electric Vehicles Toward the Five-Minute Charge Era

Electric vehicle (EV) makers are racing to develop the fastest battery chargers to give them the competitive edge, with Chinese producers once again coming out on top. One of the biggest criticisms consumers have is the length of time it takes to charge EVs, compared to refuelling internal combustion engine (ICE) alternatives. This has led several EV-makers to invest heavily in research and development into charging technology over the last decade. Some EV producers now think they may have the solution - ultrafast chargers.

The race to develop the most effective ultrafast charger commenced in 2022, after the Chinese automaker XPeng launched its S4 ultrafast supercharging technology, which offered a five-minute charge that it said would provide 210 kms of range for its G9 SUV.

In March, China’s fastest-growing EV-maker, BYD, announced that its most recent Flash Chargers are capable of delivering up to 1.5 MW, or around four times the power being provided by the “hyper-fast” 350-kW systems available in the United States. Tests revealed that BYD batteries could charge from 10 percent to 70 percent in just five minutes, and from 10 percent to 97 percent in around nine minutes.

This means that drivers may be able to gain up to 600 miles in not much longer than the time it takes to fill a petrol tank. BYD’s CEO, Wang Chuanfu, stated that limiting the charge to 97 percent is recommended, as the remaining 3 percent can be generated from regenerative braking.

BYD was able to achieve this feat by having a strong hold on the whole manufacturing process of its EVs, including vehicles, battery cells, and charging hardware. The firm switched from using lithium iron phosphate to lithium manganese iron phosphate technology, which increases energy density by around 5 percent while maintaining stability under heavy electrical loads. The firm needed to change every component of the batteries to achieve super-fast charging, including the electrodes, electrolytes, and separators, which are now capable of handling the intense current of a 1.5 MW charge without overheating or degrading.

The technology is expected to be launched in BYD’s Denza Z9GT in Paris in April. BYD plans to install over 16,000 of its new chargers across China by the end of the year and around 2,000 units in Europe. Each charging station will be fitted with stationary storage batteries to buffer grid demand and offset spikes that could otherwise overwhelm the infrastructure. While the technology had impressive results in the lab, it still needs to be used in a real-world environment to see whether the charger can hold up to BYD’s claims.

Other Chinese EV-makers are hot on the tail of BYD, having been developing their own super-fast charging technologies. Chinese automaker Zeekr showcased a fully liquid-cooled ultrafast charger, which it says is capable of providing up to 1.2MW per charging gun, in April last year. However, it is unclear whether the company has developed EVs that are compatible with the new charger.

China’s CATL has launched various battery technologies, including its second-generation Shenxing battery. The firm delivered the world’s first sodium-ion battery in 2021, which was promising, as sodium is both cheap and abundant. The new version is thought to deliver 1.3 MW of peak charging power, delivering around 2.5 km of range per second of charging.

Meanwhile, Huawei launched a 1.5 MW fast-charging system last April, which the company believes can charge a 300kWh battery in about 15 minutes, using two charging guns simultaneously. Huawei is expected to make its heavy-duty electric trucks compatible with the superfast chargers.

The United States is also racing to develop super-fast charging technology. While no U.S. company has yet achieved five-minute charging, several companies have driven down the price of batteries while making improvements to EV range. For example, GM launched a lithium manganese-rich (LMR) battery in 2025, which it produced in collaboration with LG Energy Solutions, to deploy in its vehicles starting in 2028. The low cost of some parts of the battery means that GM can reduce the price of its batteries without compromising performance or lifespan.

Meanwhile, other companies are exploring alternative charging methods to make them more competitive, such as wireless charging. The aim is to create a technology to charge a car when parked over a special pad. Studies have suggested that the technology is extremely attractive among consumers. Despite being in the nascent stage of development, wireless charging could become a reality in just a few years, given the necessary government backing and favourable regulatory frameworks.

As China races ahead in global EV manufacturing, several Chinese firms are rising to the challenge by continually breaking records for batteries and other EV technologies. All the while, companies like BYD are looking to drive down the cost of EVs, which is making them increasingly popular with consumers.