CATL has another big move

On September 13, CATL's Tianxing (B) - Commercial Bus Version Power Battery was officially released.

"Since 2013, more than 385,000 buses have been equipped with CATL batteries worldwide ." A CATL official said that the new product released this time is another important achievement of CATL in the field of bus power batteries, which can provide support for large-scale new energy city buses and power battery updates.

Image source: CATL

It is reported that this power battery is a solution tailored by CATL for the bus industry. It has an ultra-long life of 15 years and 1.5 million kilometers, an ultra-high energy density of 175Wh/kg, and super-safe protection performance of IP69 level.

It is understood that, on an annual basis, the lifespan of non-operating passenger vehicles with less than 9 seats is 15 years, while for non-operating passenger vehicles with more than 9 seats, this period is shortened to 10 years. In addition, the service life of vehicles is also subject to mileage and annual inspection standards: once the mileage reaches 600,000 kilometers or fails the annual inspection, the vehicle will be forced to be scrapped.

In terms of mileage, the mileage of medium-sized taxis is generally 500,000 kilometers; the mileage of large taxis and rental passenger cars can reach 600,000 kilometers.

The ultra-long lifespan of 15 years and 1.5 million kilometers can obviously allow the battery warranty to cover the entire life cycle of the vehicle. Even if measured by mileage, it is not a problem for two generations of vehicles to use the same power battery.

Therefore, CATL says that "the car and the battery have the same lifespan, providing you with a lifetime of worry-free living."

The energy density of 175Wh/kg is said to be the highest in the bus industry. CATL uses a U-shaped sealing solution, a zero-draft angle top cover design, and an integrated thermal management box to increase the volume energy density by 22%, making the battery lighter, smaller and more flexible.

In terms of safety, the Tianxing (B)-bus version battery can withstand up to 72 hours of water immersion, and can eliminate the potential safety hazards of water ingress to the battery in extreme environments such as rainstorms and urban flooding. In addition, this battery also has an innovative design at the battery management system level, introducing a 24-hour intelligent safety monitoring system to achieve "all-weather safety protection."

CATL said that the Tianxing (B)-bus version of commercial power batteries will be mass-produced soon. It has cooperated with 13 automobile companies including Yutong, King Long, Golden Dragon, Higer, CRRC, Zhongtong, Asiastar, Foton, Geely, Nanjing Golden Dragon, Ankai, Gree, and Dongfeng, and will develop them on 80 models.

New energy bus market has great potential

In the new energy vehicle industry, China's passenger cars are the first to achieve new energy. Industry statistics show that by 2022, the market share of new energy passenger cars (including buses, highway buses, and light buses) in China will be close to 40%, among which the market penetration rate of new energy buses is as high as 98.8%.

Since commercial vehicles have always been the hardest hit area of ​​carbon emissions, accounting for only about 10% of China's automobile ownership, commercial vehicles consume 51% of gasoline and diesel and generate 56% of road traffic carbon emissions. Therefore, the electrification of buses is of great significance.

There is a phenomenon that, from the perspective of life cycle, most new energy buses reach the upgrade period after 7 or 8 years of use. Industry data shows that 2016-2018 was the fastest development period for new energy buses in my country. This means that the power batteries installed in most new energy buses have reached or are about to reach the node of upgrade.

The retirement of old batteries and the installation of new batteries is the general trend in the industry. This is due to the huge demand for new energy bus power batteries in the context of my country's replacement.

From the perspective of the international market, according to IEA data, the global sales of new energy buses in 2023 will be 51,200, and the electrification penetration rate will be only 3.1%. It is in the early stage of the industry life cycle, and the electrification space has considerable potential.

After excluding Chinese data, the global electric bus market is in a stage of accelerated growth, with a compound growth rate of 54% in the past three years.

With an electrification rate of only 3.1%, if nearly 97% of buses are replaced with ones powered by power batteries, this will obviously be an extremely huge market.

CATL's New Energy Bus Strategy

Weike.com Lithium Battery It is noted that CATL has started to layout the commercial vehicle market since its inception.

In 2012, the second year after the company was officially established, CATL cooperated with Yutong Bus to establish its first 10-year strategic partnership.

In 2017, CATL launched the first generation of commercial fast charging, realizing mass production of buses. Four years later, it released the third generation of commercial fast charging, covering heavy truck scenarios.

In 2019, CATL signed a long-term strategic cooperation agreement with Volkswagen Trucks & Buses Latin America. The cooperative models will be equipped with a new standard battery pack developed and designed by CATL specifically for commercial vehicles.

In 2022, CATL's high-energy-density battery pack was launched. The system energy density of this product can reach 160Wh/kg and can be used in almost all commercial scenarios.

In July this year, CATL officially launched its commercial power battery brand "Tianxing", and simultaneously released two products, "Tianxing Light Commercial Vehicle (L) - Supercharge Edition" and "Tianxing Light Commercial Vehicle (L) - Long Range Edition". These two battery products can achieve 4C supercharge capability and 500km real-time range, aiming to pay tribute to commercial vehicle users and upstream and downstream partners, and are taken from the famous sentence in "The Book of Changes" "Heaven moves vigorously, and the gentleman strives for self-improvement"?.

The launch of the Tianxing light commercial vehicle (L) series products marks CATL's further expansion in the field of commercial power batteries. It provides a series of product solutions ranging from 30 to 200kWh and a real-time range of 150 to 500km, supports supercharging and extended-range applications, and covers all scenarios of the logistics industry?2.

Today, the Tianxing (B)-bus version of commercial power battery is officially released, which shows that CATL continues to increase its investment in the commercial vehicle market, and CATL is targeting not only the domestic market, but also the international market with even more vigorous demand!