In March this year, BYD announced details of its latest EV platform, which would deliver up to 1,000 kW of charging power for some of its EV models, helping add 400 km of range in just 5 minutes.
The new 1,000 V architecture with 1,000 A of charging current is designed to add 2 km of range every second, making it one of the fastest charging systems for mass-market EVs today.
Now, the first few sites with this charging system have started to come online in China, with the latest being a partnership with oil and gas operator Sinopec and local grid operators in Shenzhen.
According to reports shared by tphuang on X, this 1,000 kW capable charging site came online and will be able to charge BYD’s high-end Han L and Tang L vehicles at ultra-rapid speeds.
These will come equipped with BYD’s new Super e-Platform that is capable of 10C charging speeds, meaning that the car’s battery can be charged up to 10 times every hour.
The site itself is located about 10 km west of Shenzhen which is also the city that BYD itself is headquartered in.
This new site has three twin-plug charging stalls with long enough tables to reach cars that are either reversing in or driving forward.
There are also other chargers in additional bays for non-Super e-Platform EVs.
As mentioned above, this latest charging technology will first be featured in the latest Han L sedan and Tang L SUVs.
These vehicles went on pre-sale at the same time as the 1,000 kW Super e-Platform announcement in March.
China market prices for BYD’s Han L sedan start at $A58,500 while the BYD Tang L SUV is priced from $A75,800.
By mid-April, the first of these vehicles were delivered to customers, marking a major milestone for BYD as it pushes to increase confidence for ICE buyers with range anxiety to make the switch today.
With the first few 1,000 kW charging sites coming online, BYD is moving very quickly to ensure it establishes a lead and supports its initial Super e-Platform equipped EV customers.
It also sets the stage for more ultra-fast charging sites in China and possibly even at a global scale in the coming years, helping reduce charging times and make perceived “range anxiety” a thing of the past.
Want the latest EV news delivered straight to your inbox? Subscribe to our free daily newsletter
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.