Chinese automaker BYD has introduced a new electric vehicle battery system that the company says can charge from 10 percent to 70 percent in about five minutes. The battery pack, called Blade Battery 2.0, was unveiled Thursday and is scheduled to debut in the Yangwang U7, a full-size luxury sedan.
According to BYD, the system can reach nearly full charge in roughly nine minutes. The company said the battery can also charge from 20 percent to 97 percent in under 12 minutes in cold conditions of –4°F (–20°C).
Ultra-Fast Charging Requires New High-Power Chargers
The charging speed depends on using BYD’s newly developed Flash Charging system. The charger can deliver up to 1.5 megawatts of electricity, which is required for the fastest charging performance.
Vehicles equipped with the new battery pack will only achieve the rapid charging times when connected to one of these high-power stations.
BYD previously released a one-megawatt charging setup used on the Han L sedan. That system required two separate 500-kilowatt charging cables to be plugged into the vehicle simultaneously.
In comparison, most high-speed chargers in the United States and Europe currently provide up to 350 kilowatts of power. Some newer stations are beginning to reach 500 kilowatts.
Battery Uses Lithium Iron Phosphate Chemistry
Blade Battery 2.0 uses lithium iron phosphate (LFP) chemistry. Automakers increasingly use LFP batteries because they avoid expensive materials such as cobalt and nickel.
According to BloombergNEF data, LFP batteries currently cost about $81 per kilowatt-hour compared with roughly $128 per kilowatt-hour for nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) batteries.
LFP cells generally store less energy than NMC batteries, which can reduce vehicle range. Because of that limitation, many Western automakers use LFP cells primarily in lower-priced electric vehicles.
BYD is attempting to offset that limitation by reducing charging time, which could make LFP technology more acceptable across higher-end models.
Yangwang U7 Range And Performance
In the Yangwang U7 sedan, the battery is expected to deliver a range of just over 1,000 kilometers, or about 621 miles, on the China Light-Duty Vehicle Test Cycle.
The CLTC testing standard typically produces higher estimates than other testing systems. Analysts estimate that the CLTC cycle can overstate real-world range by roughly 35 percent compared with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency test cycle.
Under more typical driving conditions, the vehicle would likely achieve a range slightly above 400 miles on a single charge.
For comparison, the Lucid Air Grand Touring can travel about 512 miles on a full 117 kilowatt-hour battery pack based on EPA testing.
Charging Infrastructure Expansion
BYD’s Flash Charging stations use cables suspended from overhead structures, allowing them to reach either side of a vehicle. The design may help manage the weight of the cables and connectors required to handle high electrical loads.
The company said it has already completed about 4,200 Flash Charging stations across China. BYD plans to add approximately 16,000 more stations by the end of the year.
Some installations will include grid-scale battery systems designed to reduce strain on the electrical grid during high-power charging sessions.
Competition In The EV Market
BYD remains the world’s largest manufacturer of electric vehicles. The company competes with other Chinese automakers including Li Auto, Xpeng, Xiaomi, and Zeekr, as well as international competitors such as Tesla.
The Shenzhen-based company was previously one of Berkshire Hathaway’s long-term investments. Warren Buffett’s firm purchased a 10 percent stake in BYD in 2008 for $230 million and sold its remaining shares in 2025, generating returns of more than twenty times the original investment.
Despite its scale, BYD has reported a recent decline in sales. Combined vehicle deliveries in January and February 2026 fell by roughly 36 percent compared with the same period a year earlier.
The company is expected to rely on new technologies such as the Blade Battery 2.0 system to attract new buyers and maintain its position in the competitive electric vehicle market.
Featured image credits: Flickr
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