
China accelerates EV battery swapping with new tech from CATL
TDT | agencies
China is not just leading the global electric vehicle (EV) market—it's poised to transform the way EVs are powered. Chinese automakers and battery giants are now pushing battery swapping technology to new heights.
Changan Automobile has launched the first 1,000 units of its Oshan 520 sedan, primarily targeting taxi services. However, these vehicles mark a major technological leap as the first to feature CATL's innovative Choco-SEB swappable battery packs. These batteries can be exchanged in just 100 seconds at dedicated swap stations—an efficiency game-changer for EV users.
Chongqing already hosts 34 such stations, and CATL plans to expand this network to 1,000 stations across 31 cities by 2025. The infrastructure is designed to support up to 822 swaps per day per station, offering a fast, convenient alternative to conventional charging.
CATL, the world's largest EV battery manufacturer, is partnering with major automakers—including Nio, Chery, GAC, SAIC, FAW, and BAIC—to integrate this technology into upcoming models. Among the vehicles adopting the Choco-SEB system are the GAC Aion S, Hongqi E-QM5, SAIC Roewe D7, BAIC C66, Wuling Bingo, and SAIC's Maxus range.
While ideal for commercial fleets and taxis, this technology also has significant potential for long-distance drivers. Battery swapping stations on highways could one day rival the convenience of traditional petrol stations, making EV ownership even more practical and appealing.

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Rank Countries 2025 GDP(in Millions) 1 🇺🇸 U.S. $30,507 2 🇨🇳 China $19,232 3 🇩🇪 Germany $4,745 4 🇮🇳 India $4,187 5 🇯🇵 Japan $4,186 6 🇬🇧 UK $3,839 7 🇫🇷 France $3,211 8 🇮🇹 Italy $2,423 9 🇨🇦 Canada $2,225 10 🇧🇷 Brazil $2,126 11 🇷🇺 Russia $2,076 12 🇪🇸 Spain $1,800 13 🇰🇷 South Korea $1,790 14 🇦🇺 Australia $1,772 15 🇲🇽 Mexico $1,693 16 🇹🇷 Türkiye $1,437 17 🇮🇩 Indonesia $1,430 18 🇳🇱 Netherlands $1,272 19 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia $1,084 20 🇵🇱 Poland $980 21 🇨🇭 Switzerland $947 22 🇹🇼 Taiwan $805 23 🇧🇪 Belgium $685 24 🇦🇷 Argentina $684 25 🇸🇪 Sweden $620 26 🇮🇪 Ireland $599 27 🇮🇱 Israel $583 28 🇸🇬 Singapore $565 29 🇦🇪 UAE $549 30 🇹🇭 Thailand $546 31 🇦🇹 Austria $534 32 🇳🇴 Norway $504 33 🇵🇭 Philippines $497 34 🇻🇳 Vietnam $491 35 🇧🇩 Bangladesh $467 36 🇩🇰 Denmark $450 37 🇲🇾 Malaysia $445 38 🇨🇴 Colombia $428 39 🇭🇰 Hong Kong $424 40 🇿🇦 South Africa $410 41 🇷🇴 Romania $403 42 🇨🇿 Czech Republic $360 43 🇪🇬 Egypt $347 44 🇨🇱 Chile $344 45 🇮🇷 Iran $341 46 🇵🇹 Portugal $321 47 🇫🇮 Finland $304 48 🇵🇪 Peru $303 49 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan $301 50 🇩🇿 Algeria $269 51 🇬🇷 Greece $267 52 🇮🇶 Iraq $258 53 🇳🇿 New Zealand $249 54 🇭🇺 Hungary $237 55 🇶🇦 Qatar $223 56 🇺🇦 Ukraine $206 57 🇳🇬 Nigeria $188 58 🇲🇦 Morocco $166 59 🇰🇼 Kuwait $153 60 🇸🇰 Slovak Republic $147 61 🇺🇿 Uzbekistan $132 62 🇰🇪 Kenya $132 63 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic $128 64 🇪🇨 Ecuador $126 65 🇵🇷 Puerto Rico $123 66 🇬🇹 Guatemala $121 67 🇪🇹 Ethiopia $117 68 🇧🇬 Bulgaria $117 69 🇦🇴 Angola $113 70 🇻🇪 Venezuela $109 71 🇴🇲 Oman $104 72 🇨🇷 Costa Rica $103 73 🇭🇷 Croatia $99 74 🇱🇺 Luxembourg $97 75 🇨🇮 Côte d'Ivoire $94 76 🇷🇸 Serbia $93 77 🇵🇦 Panama $92 78 🇱🇹 Lithuania $89 79 🇹🇲 Turkmenistan $89 80 🇬🇭 Ghana $88 81 🇹🇿 Tanzania $86 82 🇺🇾 Uruguay $80 83 🇨🇩 DRC $79 84 🇦🇿 Azerbaijan $79 85 🇸🇮 Slovenia $75 86 🇧🇾 Belarus $72 87 🇲🇲 Myanmar $65 88 🇺🇬 Uganda $64 89 🇧🇴 Bolivia $56 90 🇹🇳 Tunisia $56 91 🇯🇴 Jordan $56 92 🇨🇲 Cameroon $56 93 🇲🇴 Macao $53 94 🇰🇭 Cambodia $50 95 🇧🇭 Bahrain $48 96 🇱🇾 Libya $47 97 🇳🇵 Nepal $46 98 🇱🇻 Latvia $46 99 🇵🇾 Paraguay $45 100 🇪🇪 Estonia $45 101 🇨🇾 Cyprus $39 102 🇭🇳 Honduras $38 103 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe $38 104 🇸🇻 El Salvador $37 105 🇬🇪 Georgia $35 106 🇮🇸 Iceland $35 107 🇸🇳 Senegal $35 108 🇭🇹 Haiti $34 109 🇵🇬 Papua NewGuinea $33 110 🇸🇩 Sudan $32 111 🇬🇳 Guinea $30 112 🇿🇲 Zambia $29 113 🇧🇦 Bosnia &Herzegovina $29 114 🇦🇱 Albania $28 115 🇧🇫 Burkina Faso $27 116 🇹🇹 Trinidad& Tobago $26 117 🇦🇲 Armenia $26 118 🇬🇾 Guyana $26 119 🇲🇳 Mongolia $26 120 🇲🇹 Malta $26 121 🇲🇿 Mozambique $24 122 🇲🇱 Mali $23 123 🇧🇯 Benin $22 124 🇳🇪 Niger $22 125 🇯🇲 Jamaica $21 126 🇳🇮 Nicaragua $21 127 🇬🇦 Gabon $20 128 🇰🇬 KyrgyzRepublic $20 129 🇲🇩 Moldova $19 130 🇧🇼 Botswana $19 131 🇹🇩 Chad $19 132 🇲🇬 Madagascar $19 133 🇲🇰 North Macedonia $18 134 🇾🇪 Yemen $17 135 🇱🇦 Laos $16 136 🇧🇳 Brunei $16 137 🇲🇺 Mauritius $15 138 🇨🇬 Congo $15 139 🇧🇸 The Bahamas $15 140 🇹🇯 Tajikistan $15 141 🇷🇼 Rwanda $15 142 🇳🇦 Namibia $14 143 🇲🇼 Malawi $14 144 🇸🇴 Somalia $13 145 🇬🇶 EquatorialGuinea $13 146 🇲🇷 Mauritania $11 147 🇽🇰 Kosovo $11 148 🇹🇬 Togo $10 149 🇲🇪 Montenegro $9 150 🇸🇱 Sierra Leone $8 151 🇧🇧 Barbados $8 152 🇲🇻 Maldives $7 153 🇧🇮 Burundi $7 154 🇫🇯 Fiji $6 155 🇸🇿 Eswatini $5 156 🇱🇷 Liberia $5 157 🇩🇯 Djibouti $5 158 🇸🇷 Suriname $5 159 🇦🇼 Aruba $4 160 🇦🇩 Andorra $4 161 🇸🇸 South Sudan $4 162 🇧🇿 Belize $4 163 🇧🇹 Bhutan $3 164 🇨🇫 Central AfricanRepublic $3 165 🇨🇻 Cabo Verde $3 166 🇬🇲 The Gambia $3 167 🇱🇨 Saint Lucia $3 168 🇱🇸 Lesotho $2 169 🇦🇬 Antigua& Barbuda $2 170 🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau $2 171 🇸🇨 Seychelles $2 172 🇹🇱 Timor-Leste $2 173 🇸🇲 San Marino $2 174 🇸🇧 Solomon Islands $2 175 🇰🇲 Comoros $2 176 🇬🇩 Grenada $1 177 🇻🇺 Vanuatu $1 178 🇻🇨 Saint Vincent& the Grenadines $1 179 🇼🇸 Samoa $1 180 🇰🇳 Saint Kitts& Nevis $1 181 🇸🇹 São Tomé& Príncipe $1 182 🇩🇲 Dominica $1 183 🇹🇴 Tonga $1 184 🇫🇲 Micronesia $1 185 🇵🇼 Palau $0.3 186 🇰🇮 Kiribati $0.3 187 🇲🇭 Marshall Islands $0.3 188 🇳🇷 Nauru $0.2 189 🇹🇻 Tuvalu $0.1 Note: Data missing for Afghanistan, Eritrea, Lebanon, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Syria, and Palestine. If we skip the next three economies—Germany, India, and Japan—then the entire rest of the world (184 countries), also has an economic output of around $50 trillion. Which means that despite the rise of regional trade, there is no escaping one of the two economic giants. Groups 2025 GDP(in Millions) 🇺🇸 U.S. & 🇨🇳 China $49,739 🌐 184 Countries $50,381 🇩🇪 Germany, 🇮🇳 India, 🇯🇵 Japan $13,118 Note: Figures are rounded to the closest trillion in the visualization. China's figures do not include Hong Kong or Macao. The U.S. is the world's largest importer of consumer goods, and China is the largest exporter. Most of the world picks one of these two as their largest trading partner. So even when countries might not enjoy the geopolitics of both countries, their economic might effectively makes them the loudest voice in the room. Want more fun comparison maps? Check out: Germany's Economy Equals 22 Other European Countries Combined for regional-specific breakdowns.