BYD is looking at the smaller EV market slightly differently and now has plans to launch its smallest EV hatchback with a new sodium-ion battery. Reports of this new battery surfaced on local media and cnevpost.
The BYD sodium-ion batteries are to be tested in December 2022 with an expected launch of the BYD Seagull in the second quarter of 2023.
According to the reports, the reason to use the new sodium-ion batteries is to have another solution while the lithium prices remain high.
BYD has plans to mass-produce sodium-ion batteries in 2023 as it aims to bring more affordable EVs with a reasonable range to market.
Performance-wise, the sodium-ion batteries are suitable for low-range applications like those found in smaller cars like the BYD Dolphin and the upcoming Seagull model. The new BYD Dolphin EV hatchback was recently spotted being tested in Sydney.
The upcoming BYD Seagull on the other hand is even smaller in size compared to the BYD Dolphin but the exact specifications are still yet to be confirmed.
What is known about the new micro-EV hatchback model is that it will be offered in two variants. One will have a sodium-ion battery and the other with a lithium-ion-based battery which is currently offered in the BYD Dolphin.
The extended-range version of the BYD Seagull will feature the lithium-ion based 44.9 kWh BYD blade battery. This will be able to provide up to 400 km of NEDC range. That’s plenty of range for many owners that will mainly use this EV hatchback for city driving.
Pricing of the BYD Seagull could start at $12,500 with an expected NEDC range of around 300 km. In real-world terms, this would be more than 250 km on a single charge in city streets driving.
The newer sodium-ion-based batteries by BYD and other brands like CATL promise to bring affordable zero-emission motoring one step closer to reality. This is good news as it helps to bridge the gap between ICE cars today and EVs.
The Driven’s view: We are very excited to see smaller EV hatchbacks go electric sooner and hope to see models like the BYD Dolphin hit our shores by 2023.
That will then create the path for even more affordable sodium-ion battery-equipped Seagull and other micro EVs to get on our roads over the coming years.
Riz is the founder of carloop based in Melbourne, specialising in Australian EV data, insight reports and trends. He is a mechanical engineer who spent the first 7 years of his career building transport infrastructure before starting carloop. He has a passion for cars, particularly EVs and wants to help reduce transport emissions in Australia. He currently drives a red Tesla Model 3.