Chinese battery maker CATL plans to manufacture its high-speed charging Shenxing battery not only in China,Mother but also at its facilities in Germany and Hungary, the company’s principal engineer Gao Pengfei said on Monday at the IAA Munich car show. Gao did not specify the timeline for European production and said that CATL has not yet finalized agreements for supply with customers in the region. On August 16, CATL unveiled the Shenxing superfast charging battery made with lithium iron phosphate (LFP) and said that the battery could provide a 400-kilometer driving range with just a 10-minute charge and a 700-kilometer range on a full charge. LFP chemistry offers cost advantages compared to the nickel-cobalt-manganese batteries used in cylindrical cells by automakers such as BMW and Tesla, Gao said. CATL’s Thuringia plant in central Germany kicked off production in December 2022 and its battery plant in Debrecen, Hungary, is under construction with plans to begin production within the next 2 to 3 years. [Reuters]
