A 4-Minute EV Charge Is Here—But There’s a Catch

Better than a BYD Blade

Geely has a new battery technology that charges faster than BYD's Blade 2.0, and it's called the "Energee Golden Brick." A new kind of race has been brewing lately, and it's not happening at a race track, but at charging stations. Automakers have been quite showy about how fast their cars can power up, with BYD leading the charge – pun intended.

As reported by Car News China, Lynk and Co, a brand under the Geely group, claims that its 95 kWh battery pack can charge from 10 to 70% in just 4 minutes and 22 seconds, which is about 38 seconds faster than BYD's Flash Charging standard, which takes five minutes to achieve the same result. It looks like we have a new leader in the space of "fastest to charge."

The Golden Brick

From 10 to 80%, Geely's 900V Energee Golden Brick gets through that in just five minutes and 32 seconds. From 10% to 97%, Geely's EV took only 8 minutes and 42 seconds. In comparison, BYD's 10 to 97 test yielded about 9 minutes of charge time. Bottom line is, Geely's is faster.

The hardware is what makes this speed possible. Geely's peak power is 1,100 kW, achieved at low battery power levels. The system can "ramp down" (if you could even call it that) to about 500 kW when the battery reaches 75%, and 350 kW when the vehicle reaches 97%. Even at 97%, the charger's output is similar to some faster chargers at their peak.

Keeping temperatures in check in the system requires a full liquid-cooling system. Heat is the number one cause of battery degradation in pretty much anything with a power cell, honestly, so keeping that cool is part of the challenge of faster and faster charging.

There's a Catch

For now, the best that Geely gets out of this technology is bragging rights. It's no use to you and me if we can't find the appropriate charger. That's the problem that Geely might face with this particular technology. While reverse compatibility shouldn't be an issue, it's getting to a station with the ultra-fast charging standard ready to use.

Geely's been slower to roll out these next-generation stations. BYD has already installed its 5,000th megawatt Flash Charging station and expects to roll out another 20,000 stations by year-end to ensure that the new charging standard will be utilized by its consumers.

On the other hand, the Geely group's ultra-fast charging network is about a quarter of BYD's. For now, Geely may claim bragging rights, but if the company can't expand its network fast enough, maybe BYD will still be the last to laugh.

Consumers Win and Lose at the Same Time

While faster and faster charging speeds are good if you're in a pinch, long term battery performance, safety, and longevity becomes a concern. Fast charging puts an immense strain on battery chemistry and fast charging is ideally only used when it is absolutely necessary. As the largest EV battery producing country in the world, Chinese automakers are really pushing the boundaries of battery technology.

Geely's going to fight an uphill battle to get its new charging standard out, and that means new cars that are capable of 1,100 kW charging and setting up charging stations for customers to take advantage of. It may take a while longer for Geely to accomplish its goal. In that time, BYD's current megawatt standard would have already pulled ahead in terms of adoption.

In the end, the bigger question is: Does the consumer win? Only time will tell, and only if the charging standard can guarantee safety. Should EV makers continue to push charging speeds closer and closer to fuel-fill up speeds? I think we could hit a wall very soon, and I hope that doesn't involve a few literal press fire.

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