BYD's next-generation blade battery will improve the range of vehicles and extend the life cycle of the battery itself, an executive said.

BYD (HKG: 1211, OTCMKTS: BYDDY) will launch its next-generation battery next year, which is expected to deliver better range performance for vehicles.

"I think in the coming years, 2025, BYD will introduce the new generation of our remarkable blade battery," Cao Shuang, the managing director of BYD Central Asia in European Auto Sales Division, said in an interview with Chinese state media outlet CGTN on the sidelines of the just-concluded 29th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) in Baku, Azerbaijan.

"This will enhance the driving distance of our vehicles, and also extend the life cycle of the battery itself," Cao said, according to a video of the interview that aired on November 22.

BYD focuses on its battery life cycle management system and is also working closely with partners in various industries to develop battery reuse systems, he said.

After the first life of the battery in vehicles, for example, they can be used for different types of applications, such as energy storage, according to Cao.

BYD has set a good example globally by striving to introduce the latest new energy-vehicle (NEV) products, as well as the latest technologies, for different people in different countries, he said.

"This commitment is unwavering, no matter what has happened globally in different countries," Cao said.

BYD unveiled its first generation blade battery in March 2020, and the lithium iron phosphate chemistry-based battery, which focuses on safety, are now used across the NEV maker's entire model lineup.

BYD, the world's second-largest maker of power battery cells, has not updated the battery in the past few years. Meanwhile, other players, including CATL, have launched several new battery products and put batteries with charging multiples of up to 5 C into service.

On June 13, local media outlet 36kr cited a source close to BYD as saying that the company's second-generation blade battery could be launched in the second half of 2024, and that it has a 6 C battery in the pipeline.

On October 30, Wu Ying, editor-in-chief of local automotive media outlet Xchuxing, said in a Weibo post that BYD's luxury sub-brand Yangwang's U7 sedan would be powered by the second-generation blade battery, which would have a charging multiplier of more than 5.5 C and a discharging multiplier of more than 14 C.

Yangwang is a BYD sub-brand announced on January 5, 2023 to target the ultra-luxury market in the RMB 1 million ($138,000) price range, with the first model being the U8 off-road SUV (sport utility vehicle).

Yangwang said on January 10 this year that the brand's first sedan, named the U7, would have more than 1,000 horsepower and would be priced in the 1 million yuan range.

Yangwang began pre-sales of the U7 on November 15, the first day of the 2024 Guangzhou auto show, but did not announce pricing information or an official launch date.

($1 = RMB 7.2469)

Global EV battery market share in Jan-Sept 2024: CATL 36.7%, BYD 16.4%