Megawatt Charging War Is Officially On in China, With Zeekr Beating BYD's Charging Speeds

[Beijingwalker]

Megawatt Charging War Is Officially On in China, With Zeekr Beating BYD's Charging Speeds​

Published: 31 Mar 2025, 09:13 UTC• By:
Cristian Agatie

Photo: Zeekr

Zeekr unveiled a DC fast charger with a peak power of 1.2 MWh one week after BYD demonstrated its 1-MW charging technology. A new charging war is brewing in China, a strange race to the bottom in charging times. Meanwhile, competitors argue that such an insane charging speed is unnecessary and could harm the battery.

China is a brutal market regardless of the product you're selling. That's because the competition is insane, and everyone is trying to price out competitors, leading to a price "race to the bottom." This is essentially why few companies make a majority of profits in any given market, including smartphones, computers, and, more recently, electric vehicles.

If you want to see how brutal the Chinese car market is, it's enough to compare the prices of seemingly identical cars sold in China and in the US or Europe. For instance, Volkswagen sells the ID.3 compact EV for 120,000 yuan, about $17,000. The same car costs in Germany 40,000 euros, or over $43,000. The same goes for a Tesla Model Y LR AWD, which is sold for 313,500 yuan ($43,200) in China and 52,990 euros ($57,300) in Europe.

It appears that price is not the only factor, and any perceived competitive advantage is now fought to the death. The latest war brewing is for charging power, an area most carmakers have settled at around 350 kW for years. However, the status quo was demolished last week when BYD announced their new DC fast chargers with a peak power of 1 MW. Over the weekend, Zeekr followed with a 1.2-MW charger, which it will unveil at the Shanghai auto show in late April.

Zeekr is a brand owned by Geely and has competed fiercely with battery heavyweights like CATL and BYD in terms of charging performance and battery energy density. Its Golden Battery is among the fastest charging on the market, as recently demonstrated during a 0-100% charging test with a Zeekr 7X. The car needed only 22 minutes to fully charge from empty, sustaining over 300 kW of power for almost the entire session, with a peak power of over 500 kW.

Since it launched the Zeekr 7X and its Golden Battery, the Chinese carmaker has advanced its charging tech to support 600 kW and, later, 800 kW peak power. The latest charging tech allowing 1.2 MW peak charging power represents a big step-up, which is likely announced to counter BYD's 1-MW chargers. Zeekr's charging network has 826 charging stations with over 4,000 posts.

This projects a new trend in EV ownership, making EV charging as fast as filling up a gas tank. Instead of a price race to the bottom, you can call this a charging time race to the bottom. BYD already claims its first EVs using the 1-MW charging tech (Tang L and Han L) can add 250 miles (400 km) of range in 5 minutes of charging. Zeekr has not yet offered such details or revealed which cars will use this ultra-fast charging tech.

What is certain is that other companies don't see this new war as a good thing. Andrew Cornelia, the CEO of Mercedes-Benz High-Power Charging, brushed off the achievement in an interview with InsideEVs. While he conceded it's an "amazing breakthrough," Cornelia warned that "faster is not always better." He also said charging the battery in 5 minutes is unnecessary, as most people spend more time sipping a coffee or relaxing.

Even among EV fans, there's a widespread belief that fast charging is not good for a car's battery. However, there are many examples of EVs that have been frequently charged at DC stations without experiencing higher battery degradation. Recently, a Hyundai Ioniq 5 that was exclusively fast-charged to 100% had its battery replaced after over 300,000 miles (480,000 km). It also had over 87% of its original capacity when it died

 

[冖_冖]

Huawei launches fully liquid-cooled megawatt charger: 1.5 megawatts, 2400A current, charging 20 kWh per minute

Huawei's fully liquid-cooled 1.5 megawatt EV charger delivers a sustained 2400A current for 15 minutes

carnewschina.com

Huawei launches fully liquid-cooled megawatt charger: 1.5 megawatts, 2400A current, charging 20 kWh per minute​

Apr 22, 2025 12:53 PM CEST

Today, Huawei advanced the state of electric vehicle infrastructure, unveiling what it describes as the industry’s first fully liquid-cooled megawatt fast-charging solution at its “2025 Huawei Intelligent Electric & Intelligent Charging Network Launch Conference.”


15 minutes SoC 10% to 90% for a heavy truck

The new charger boasts impressive specifications, including a peak power output of 1.5 megawatts and the ability to add 20 kWh of energy per minute. It can sustain a maximum charging current of 2400 amps for a continuous 15 minutes, enabling a 300 kWh battery pack, typical for heavy-duty applications, to achieve a full charge cycle in just a quarter of an hour. Huawei claims this represents a nearly fourfold improvement in replenishment efficiency compared to traditional fast-charging stations.


Industry’s first fully liquid-cooled megawatt charger

A key technological innovation is the charger’s immersive liquid cooling system. This design tackles the critical challenge of thermal runaway often associated with high-power charging, ensuring stable operation across a wide temperature range from -30°C to 60°C. Huawei states this enhances reliability, reducing the failure rate by 50% and extending the operational lifespan of the equipment to 15 years. The system incorporates Huawei’s self-developed Silicon Carbide (SiC) chips, which offer triple the energy density of conventional silicon-based components.


Industry’s only 15-minute charger for heavy trucks

Intelligent features are also integrated, including an innovative power allocation algorithm that dynamically adjusts the output power, mitigating potential impacts on the electrical grid. The system supports Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) interaction, allowing bidirectional energy flow. In collaboration with the State Grid, Huawei has developed an intelligent scheduling system to dynamically manage charging power and reduce peak grid load by up to 40%.


Stable operation across a wide temperature range

While developed with heavy-duty electric trucks in mind for high-frequency scenarios like ports and mines, Huawei has already collaborated with 11 automakers on over 30 compatible 4c ultra-fast charging truck models. The megawatt charger is compatible with passenger cars and construction machinery, offering plug-and-play functionality for an estimated 99% of existing EV models.


Massive reduction of operating costs

Real-world validation comes from a pilot project at Shenzhen’s Yantian Port, where electric heavy-duty trucks have successfully implemented a “charge 15 minutes, operate 4 hours” work cycle. This has reportedly led to a 35% reduction in operating costs compared to traditional diesel trucks.

Looking ahead, Huawei has forged strategic partnerships with major logistics players like SF Express and JD Logistics, planning an initial deployment of 5,000 electric heavy-duty trucks compatible with the new megawatt charging system. Furthermore, the company is actively participating in the development and refinement of megawatt-level charging protocols to help establish industry standards.

 

[冖_冖]

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/19/climate/us-electric-vehicle-chargers-china.html

Why Can’t the U.S. Build 5-Minute E.V. Chargers?​

Chinese automakers have rolled out chargers that can mostly recharge a car’s battery in about five minutes. Yet U.S. technology lags far behind.