Chinese corporations Lifan and Geely will unite their efforts in expanding the infrastructure of rapid EV battery swap stations. CarNewsChina reports that the new company will be called Chongqing Ruilan Automotive Technology (Ruilan Auto for short) and will receive 300 million Yuan in investment from each of the participants.
As a result, Rulian Auto expects to be operating up to 5,000 stations spread over the 100 largest cities of China by the year 2025. The company will also recycle old batteries and repair battery packs that can still be used.
The executives of both companies believe on-the-go battery swaps will suit EV owners much better than charging, which tends to take much longer. Taxis and ride sharing fleets are mentioned among the earliest adopters of the tech, but regular drivers will also be able to take advantage of it.
Geely and Lifan already have a jointly developed electric platform named Global Battery Rapid Change (GBRC), which supports fast battery swaps. The GBRC chassis lends itself to a number of production cars such as sedans, crossover SUVs and minivans with between 2.7 and 3.1 meters of wheelbase.
According to CarNewsChina, local automaker Maple Leaf also intends to join in on the project. Its 60S sedan supports a rapid battery swap that only takes one minute. The car itself is 4.7 meters long and primarily marketed towards taxi services. It will debut in February with a single electric motor driving the wheels with 136 PS (134 hp / 100 kW).