China’s CATL, the world’s largest maker of batteries for electric vehicles, is considering expanding its battery replacement business to international markets, a top executive told news.
China’s CATL, or Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited, is a supplier to companies such as Tesla and Ford.
In January, the Chinese battery maker launched a battery replacement business called EVOGO in 10 Chinese cities. The purpose is to eliminate the need for electric cars to stop at charging stations. Instead, drivers can rent batteries from CATL and put them in the car when their other battery dies. This takes a few minutes.
Nio, an electric car startup in China, also has a competitive battery swap program. The company plans to expand it to build 1,000 battery swap stations outside China by 2025, most of them in Europe, co-founder Nio Qin Lihong told Reuters this week.
Li Xiaoning, CATL’s executive president for overseas commercial applications, told CNBC in an interview on Thursday that the company is also evaluating the expansion of battery replacement products in Europe.
“I would say it will start in China this year. Step by step, we will review the overseas presence of EVOGO,” Li said. “We are starting to evaluate the possibility of cooperation with many partners. We have to statuette out the details in practice,” he added. “There are many things we are considering. Product technology is one thing; it’s the business case, regulations, local regulations, also other factors that we must consider.”
If CATL expands its business overseas, it could help foreign automakers offer battery replacement services to their customers without building the expensive infrastructure.
CATL faces challenges, added the rising cost of raw materials such as lithium used in batteries.
However, the company doubled its revenue in the second quarter as demand for electric vehicles remained strong.