Zeekr's new 800V Golden Battery can go 311 miles on a 15 minute charge

Zeekr, the ambitious electric vehicle manufacturer from the Geely stables, detailed its latest innovation today - the 100 kWh battery pack to power the just-revealed Zeekr 007 with its impressive 541 miles CLTC range.

The Golden "Brick" Battery, 800V lithium iron phosphate (LFP) powerhouse, claims to be able to go 311 miles after charging for just 15 minutes. That without compromising on safety or performance in extreme conditions.

During the Zeekr Power Day, the company showcased the Golden Brick's robustness by subjecting it to an eight-hour stint in a chilling -49°F environment, a fiery 1,830°F blaze, and a muddy 1.9 miles drag. We even sawa 22-ton roller drive over it and saw the 1,565 lb battery fall 394 inches from a crane - no fire, no smoke, no explosions.

To get there Zeekr covered the battery with a high-voltage-resistant gold-colored insulation film that increases resistance by 27%. The entire pack is waterproof, reaching an impressive IPX level 8.

#ZEEKR’s new LFP batteries have high energy density and they are designed to have excellent safety performance. The packs have passed six strict safety tests including nail penetration conducted by leading industry testing agencies. pic.twitter.com/bMbyfwTzrD

— ZEEKR (@ZEEKRGlobal) December 15, 2023

The battery pack has another achievement to its name - a volume utilization exceeding 80%, which means it can handle more capacity at the same size. To get there Zeekr used an optimized "sandwich structure," ultra-thin separators, and an integrated tray design. For context, CATL's Qilin battery, unveiled in June 2022, boasted a 72% utilization - and that was a world record at the time. Golden “Brick” Battery comfortably exceeds that with its 83.7%.

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With a peak charging power of 500 kW and a maximum charge rate of 4.5C, the new battery goes between 10% and 80% capacity in 15 minutes and the company claims that should be enough for the Zeekr 007 to do 311 miles (although that's undoubtedly on the optimistic CLTC protocol). Even at a chilly 14°F, the battery maintains a charging speed 25% faster than current tech, Zeekr claims, although we got no numbers there.

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Zeekr also brought some news on the charger end. The company currently operates 401 fast charging stations in China with 2,261 charging poles, but it aims to reach 1,000 charging stations by next year and a whopping 10,000 charging poles by 2026.

Adding to its arsenal, Zeekr introduced a V3 800 kW fast charger, complementing the existing V2 600 kW liquid-cooled fast charger. Both fast chargers are crafted by another Geely subsidiary, VREMT, but are proudly adorned with the Zeekr badge.

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In the longer term, Zeekr introduced the 1515 plan. The goal is to ensure all Zeekr owners are no more than 15 minutes away from a 15-minute charge. Zeekr envisions 90% of its owners benefiting from this plan within three years, making EV charging as commonplace as a trip to the corner store.

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