EV company sets record with over 1 million battery swaps this month: 'The US continues to trail ... in certain technologies'

A major electric vehicle milestone just dropped, and it could change how we think about charging forever.

According to Autoblog, Chinese automaker Nio announced that it completed more than 146,000 battery swaps in a single day on Feb. 15, pushing its total for the month past one million swaps. 

What's even more shocking is that the company has now surpassed 100 million battery swaps overall.

This is real proof that battery swapping, long discussed as a futuristic alternative to plugging in, can actually work at scale.

So what is battery swapping, exactly?

Instead of plugging an electric vehicle into a charger and waiting 20 to 40 minutes (or longer), drivers pull into a swap station. In about three minutes, a depleted battery is automatically removed and replaced with a fully charged one. Then they're back on the road.

According to reporting highlighted by Autoblog, this process is roughly 15 to 25 minutes faster than fast-charging a Tesla Model 3 from 10% to 80% under ideal conditions.

For everyday drivers, that kind of time savings can make a huge difference. This is especially true for those who need to travel often for long trips or busy workdays.

Battery swapping also brings other practical benefits. Swapped batteries are inspected before being recharged and returned to circulation, which can help maintain performance and extend battery life. 

Centralized charging can also reduce strain on the power grid during peak hours, something that could help cities avoid outages and manage electricity demand more smoothly.

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As of this month, Nio operates more than 8,600 charging and battery swap stations across China. That expansive network is what allows the model to function at scale.

Meanwhile, in the United States, most efforts are focused on expanding plug-in fast-charging infrastructure. Companies like Electrify America, ChargePoint, and EVgo are rapidly building stations nationwide.

Autoblog noted that "the U.S. continues to trail China in certain EV technologies," a reality demonstrated by Nio's latest benchmark.

Battery swapping in the U.S. has largely remained limited to pilot projects. Tesla experimented with the idea years ago but ultimately focused on expanding its Supercharger network. 

That doesn't mean the concept is off the table; far from it.

Another major Chinese battery manufacturer, CATL, is rolling out its own swap network with plans for thousands of stations. Its CEO previously predicted that by 2030, battery swapping, home charging, and public charging could share the market.

If that vision materializes globally, EV ownership could feel even more convenient than driving a gas-powered car.

Whether battery swapping expands beyond China remains to be seen. But if the past month is any indication, the future of electric driving may look a lot more like a three-minute pit stop than a long charging break.

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