CATL's new LFP battery brings 620 miles range and 10-minute charging to electric vehicles

Electric cars are charging towards becoming mainstream, with battery technology improving at unprecedented speed. Market leader CATL just turned announced its latest creation - the Shenxing Plus LFP battery.

Typically, lithium-iron phosphate batteries were the sensible choice, offering affordability and stability but lacking the long-range punch of pricier chemistries. CATL's engineering team is now trying to rewrite the rulebook. The Shenxing Plus boasts an energy density of 205 Wh/kg – comparable to the high-end stuff. That means EVs more charge can fit within the same volume, enabling longer ranges and keeping costs lower.

The target number here is 620 miles – about the distance between Los Angeles and Salt Lake City. The Shenxing Plus promises this on a single charge (under the CLTC testing cycle), although obviously it didn't reveal what kind of vehicle it would take to achieve it.

But density isn't the only trick this new battery hides up its sleeve. The Shenxing Plus is designed for blistering charging speeds - 4C to be specific, which indicates that the battery can theorettically be filled from 0 to 100% in 15 minutes. In real-world applications, 10 minutes plugged in can add about 373 miles of range (a 10-70% charge). That's equivalent to adding 1 km (0.6 miles) of range for every second your car is hooked up.

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