On October 20th 2023, IEA HEV TCP Task 48, AVERE and Botree Recycling Technologies co-orgnized the workshop on Battery Swapping in Passenger EVs. In addition to the existing members, some new and well-known company and organizations in the industry also make speech in the workshop, including China Electric Vehicle Charging lnfrastructure Promotion Alliance (CN), China Auto Standardization Research Institute (CN), Lvzhou Technology（CN）, State Grid Corporation (CN), NIO Deutschland GmbH (DE), and Porsche Consulting（DE）.
The workshop was hosted by the Secretary General of AVERE, Philippe. He expressed his gratitude to all the speakers and participants for their participation in the IEA HEV-TCP Task 48 and AVERE event.
The workshop also attracted more than 50 representatives from China, Belgium, Germany, Sweden, India to participate in. The attendees from various industries and backgrounds to share their thoughts and insights on the topic.
The speakers and topics as follows:
Zongqi Tong, Vice-Secretary of the China Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Promotion Alliance, presented on “The Current State of Battery Swapping Industry in China and Its Role in Advancing Ecological Development for Electric Vehicles.” He outlined six key aspects, including battery swapping policies, development status, industrial ecosystem, battery swapping standards, problems, and policy recommendations.
Tong believes that passenger EV battery swapping has rapidly developed as a brand, and its operation scenario has become a breakthrough point for most enterprises. He identified nine ecological advantages of battery swapping. These benefits include improving charging shortcomings, shortening replenishment time, increasing efficiency, being grid-friendly, reducing car purchase costs, achieving energy saving and emission reduction, getting rid of battery decay concerns, establishing a battery asset management industry, and saving social public resources.
However, the battery swapping industry also faces challenges that must be solved for its long-term future.
Dongdong Cao, China’s Electric Vehicle Battery Swapping Standard Leader from the China Automotive Technology & Research Center, delivered a presentation on the “Current Status and Development of Electric Passenger Vehicle Battery Swap Standards in China.” He focused on two aspects of China’s standard system: construction and future plans.
In 2001, seven electric vehicle standards were published, and the current effective standards consist of 110 (including 82 national standards and 28 industry standards). The standard system covers vehicle, basic and general, key systems and components, and energy supply systems. The battery swap standard system includes safety, interchangeability, and usability. In September 2023, China proposed the establishment of a battery swap working group at the ISO/TC22/SC37 annual meeting which was positively received by the ISO secretariat.
Many countries and regions are conducting research and promoting Battery Swap EV. China aims to continue research on electric passenger vehicle battery swap standards focusing on safety, interchangeability, and usability. China intends to complete the project proposal as soon as possible, in line with the ISO/TC22/SC37 secretariat requirements, and start preparing the “General Information and Use Case Definitions” standard.
Jun Zha, Assistant to the General Manager at Lv Zhou Technology, presented on the topic of “Battery Swap Solutions based on Standardized Batteries – The Hefei Case.” He covered four main areas: Background Introduction, Major Players, Standardized Batteries, Hefei Case, and some Disadvantages.
Major Players in the EV industry include vehicle enterprises such as NIO, Shanghai-Automotive-Industry-Corp, Guangzhou Automobile Group, and Geely Auto. Big battery swap service operators are GCL-ET, Aulton, and CATL EVOGO, while small and medium-sized operators include Lvzhou Tech, Weilin, EnerGo, and Zeqing.
The operation of stations in Hefei is stable, with some patterns observed in relation to people’s travel demands and location.
The webinar began with an overview of the benefits and challenges of battery swapping, as well as the latest advancements in the technology. However, there are some disadvantages to consider, such as the increased duration of battery swapping, which decreases operational efficiency and revenue capacity of stations, as well as the higher cost of standardized batteries and stations, which affects ROI and IRR. The R&D cost and complexity of operation and management systems also increase.
Zheyi Pei, a Senior Engineer at State Grid Corporation Dispatch Center, delivered a presentation on the “Role of Battery Swapping Modes in Establishing a New Power System and Appropriate Suggestions”.
He motioned that compared to charging, battery swapping has several benefits:
• It facilitates fast battery swapping , efficient replenishment and convenient travel.
• Battery swapping mode separates vehicles and electricity, reducing the initial purchase cost of a vehicle.
• This mode can enhance safety and extend battery service life.
• It optimizes power grid efficiency while reducing the pressure of increasing capacity.
• Battery swapping stations consume less space and do not require charging space, which resolves many charging difficulties.
Despite the advantages that battery swapping offers, the charging facility construction and popularization have also developed extensively. The rapid-charging technology has improved the convenience of charging, making it a strong competitor to battery swapping technology. In some cases, users may prefer charging over battery swapping, presenting a challenge for the swapping industry.
To improve battery swapping technology, the following suggestions have been made:
1. The new energy vehicle battery swapping station can not only complete the vehicle replenishing function but also support the new power system’s operations.
2. Establish and improve relevant technical standards, including car and battery size, shape, interface requirements.
3. Study the batery swapping station operation technology and procedure.
4. Accelerate the pilot construction of electric vehicle battery swapping power stations.
5. Deepen international cooperation.
Yu Liao, the Head of Swapping & Charging Business Operations and Head of Power Switzerland and Austria at NIO Deutschland GmbH, presented on NIO’s Battery Swapping Layout and Strategic Opportunities. NIO Power’s solution offers chargeable, swappable, and upgradeable batteries, providing a holistic recharging experience beyond traditional refueling. The NIO Power Swap Network connects 10 major expressways and 8 metropolises, with plans to expand to 1,000 stations by the end of 2023 and 5,000 stations cumulatively by 2025. The swap stations are designed with a compact structure, strong compatibility, and high capacity, allowing for automatic parking and swapping in just 2.5 minutes. NIO Power also offers smart and all-round features, including IoT capabilities, cloud-edge computing, and full automation. The company’s battery swap solution is seen as the most suitable mode for charging vehicles in China, with the government encouraging the development of battery swapping and offering tax benefits for swappable vehicles. The solution also offers flexible battery upgrades for urban commutes and getaways, reducing users’ costs on batteries. The company plans to develop the solution in three stages, starting with existing NIO batteries and eventually defining the “Perfect Battery” through joint efforts with technology development.
Enrico Maria Mayrhofer, Head of Regulatory Affairs at Piaggio Group, presented an update on the Swappable Batteries Motorcycle Consortium’s activities. He first noted the weaknesses of current electrification programs for customers, followed by the key advantages of swappable batteries.
The aim of the SBMC is to develop common technical specifications for the battery system and define the common usage of the swapping system. They aim to promote and expand the adoption of these common specifications as an international Swappable Battery System standard for interoperability, compatibility, safety, and security. The common technical specifications will be suitable for different vehicle categories and usages, including L1e-B, L2e, L3e-A1/A2, L5e, L6e, L7e, and drive train power up to 11 kWnom (~20 kWp). These specifications will be suitable for worldwide usage, commuting, sport, and light off-road categories.
The portable battery should weigh below 12 kg and have a battery energy capacity of up to 2000 Wh. The battery will operate within voltage Class A limits to ensure safety against electrical shock while maintaining cost efficiency. It will be possible to have single or multiple battery connections with a maximum of 2 batteries in serial and a maximum of 8 batteries in parallel.
The consortium hopes to develop a standard that will support the global deployment of the Swappable Battery System in light vehicles.
Steffen Schmidt, Engineer for electrical technology delivered a presentation on the An optimised battery application concept as a basis for battery swapping technology in electric cars
In a future standard, the two scenarios described – combination of fixed and exchangeable batteries and equipment with several smaller batteries – should be taken into account. The first would perhaps be a way to get some established car manufacturers on board and the second a way to limit battery diversity.
The most important precondition to help battery swapping achieve a breakthrough would be the establishment of an international standard for this purpose.
Ziwei Xie, Sennior manager, Porsche Consultingdelivered a presentation on the Briefing introduction of battery swapping market in China.
His perspective is that, with the rapid development of NEV, battery swapping is a solution for improving the customerexperience of charging
He concluded that Battery swapping has the potential to improve the environmental performance of electric cars, increase their range and make them more cost effective.
Battery swapping can solve pain points from three perspectives
Chinese government established policies and subsidies to promote battery swapping development. In H1 2023, 2266 swapping stations nation wide, mainly located in the region around Shanghai. 70% of the swapping stations belongs to NIO
More and more players are seen in the swapping market, while NIO is leading the way of swapping. Currently swapping has whole pack and modular mode, whole pack is more widely adapt. Swapping and energy services bring revenue for swapping stations, but profits are heavily influenced by commissions.
Attendees had the opportunity to ask questions and share their own experiences with battery swapping in EVs. Many people expressed interest in the potential of this technology to enhance the convenience and accessibility of EV ownership.
After presentations, the attendees also engaged enthusiastically in the ensuing interactive session, with the key takeaways summarized as follows.
- Actual status of battery swaping solution for electric vehicles
- What are the main barriers and challenges to mass deployment of battery swaping solution ?
- What is the level of development of Wuhan as a model among China’s power-switching cities, and what can be learned from the global experience
- Battery swapping technology
- Waste battery recycling
- Third party battery suppliers
- Hydrogen Vehicle Outlook
- Business model of battery swapping
- Case Studies of Battery swapping
- Future Trends of Battery swapping
- Costs and Major Revenues of Battery swapping Stations for Passenger Cars
- How does NIO finance the big amount of swap stations? And how are these stations prepared to serve the future ‘perfect swap battery’?
- Are the NIO swapping stations also focused on the taxi/ride hailing market in Europe?
Overall, the workshop provided a valuable platform for discussion and exchange of ideas on battery swapping in Passenger EVs. The goal is to use the insights and knowledge shared during the workshop to advance the development and implementation of this technology, ultimately contributing to widespread adoption of EVs and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.