Chinese Oil Company Considering National Battery Swap System for EVs

One of China's major oil companies - already a partner in the  joint venture that will supply lithium-ion batteries for California-based Coda Automotive's upcoming electric sedan - is now considering a network of battery swap stations in China, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.

China National Offshore Oil envisions a national network of stations where motorists can swap discharged EV batteries for full charged packs.  "We can't build" electric cars, "but we can supply the energy," the oil company parent's strategy director told the newspaper.

Such a program, if it were to be launched, its success would be predicated on a number of Chinese automakers building their electric cars with swappable batteries.

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A Renault EV prototype sits on battery exchange platform in Better Place demonstration, while machinery pulls new battery pack from storage.

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The company is thinking along the same lines as California's Better Place, which plans national networks of battery exchange stations in Israel and Denmark for EVs to be built and sold in those countries by the Renault-Nissan Alliance starting in 2011.

Better Place also has said it intends to invest up to $1 billion to install a battery swap and charging network in the San Fransisco Bay Area, although no U.S. or Japanese car company has yet said it will build EVs with swappable batteries (although the company is participating in the development of the Renault-based swappable battery car for Israel and Denmark, Nissan officials have so far turned thumbs down on the idea of replaceable batteries in Nissan brand electric vehicles.)

China National may be thinking that a decision to install swap stations will give Chinese automakers incentive to design their EVs to use replaceable battery packs.

The oil company already has invested more than $700 million in Tianjin Lishen Battery, the Chinese company that has an alliance with Coda and an agreement to supply the nascent EV maker's batteries.

The Coda sedan will be built in China and shipped to the U.S. starting in the second half of next year, initially for sales only in California.  As far as we know, there are no plans to build it with a swappable battery system.

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John O'Dell November 3, 2009, 9:24 AM

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