This new EV charger can charge as quickly as filling with petrol at the pump

Is this the moment EV sceptics have been waiting for? Finally, an electric car company has revealed the technology to charge an EV battery as quickly as it takes to fill a tank of petrol.

At least that’s the claim. Chinese EV giant BYD says its new Super e-Platform architecture has an enormous charge rate of 1,000 kW – almost three times more than the maximum charge rate of most current EVs, and ten times that of many other new cars on the market today.

To add some context, BYD says the massive charge rate is enough to give an EV 249 miles (400 km) of range in just five minutes. Until now, the fastest-charging EVs top out at 350 kW and replenish their batteries with a similar amount of range in about 20 minutes.

BYD’s new platform operates at 1,000 volts and 1,000 amps, which is also much more than what’s available today, since only a handful of EVs operate at 800 volts, while the majority run at 400.

The company also says how its new technology can fill a battery at 600 kW, even when it is 90 percent full. Normally, an almost-full charges much more slowly than one that’s mostly empty.

To add yet more context, BYD’s claim of 1,000 kW charging is double that of Tesla’s most powerful Supercharger to date, which can deliver electricity at 500 kW, even though Tesla cars can’t yet fill their batteries at such a high rate. BYD says it plans to install the new 1,000 kW technology at over 400 new charge stations across China.

Equally interesting is how much of an improvement this is on BYD’s current technology. The company’s latest Seal EV can only charge at up to 150 kW, while the company’s smaller and cheaper Atto 3 can manage just 88 kW.

BYD’s new platform also features a new motor. Developed in-house by the company itself, the motor can spin at up to 30,511 rpm – almost double that of a Porsche Taycan – and the Chinese company claims it’s the first mass-produced motor to exceed 30,000 rpm. Maximum power output is 767 horsepower, and BYD says its platform then adds an optional second, 304 hp motor for a combined output of over 1,000 horsepower.

And the best bit is, instead of being merely a proof of concept, this new technology is ready for production.

It appears in the updated Han L saloon and Tang L SUV, both are going on sale in China later in 2025. In a live demonstration this week, BYD showed how a single 1MW (1,000 kW) charger can deliver maximum power to both of its new cars just 10 seconds after the charge begins. The vehicles filled their batteries from seven to 50 percent in 4.5 minutes.