China’s CATL partners with ZEEKR for its Qilin Batteries with 1,000 km range

Credit: CATL

Written by Cláudio Afonso | [email protected] | LinkedIn | Twitter

The Chinese battery maker CATL announced on Saturday that the automaker ZEEKR will be the first one to be powered by its mass-produced Qilin batteries of 1,000 km range.

The deliveries of ZEEKR’s MPV 009 will start in the first quarter of 2023 and will be the world’s first car with Qilin inside while the ZEEKR 001 model will be the world’s first model equipped with Qilin batteries of 1,000 km range with the first deliveries expected in Q2 2023.

The two companies signed a five-year partnership to strength the interaction of supply and demand and to promote the technological advancement of the new energy industry.

CATL’s Qilin batteries are based on the third-generation CTP technology and feature a record-breaking volume utilization efficiency of 72% and an energy density of up to 255 Wh/kg, the company explained.

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The batteries can deliver 13% more power than the 4680 battery accomplishing “an all-around improvement in range, fast charging, safety, service life, efficiency, and low-temperature performance”. 

ZEEKR CEO An Conghui commented the 009 model with Qilin inside “will be delivered to our customers in Q1 2023, and ZEEKR 001 Qilin edition will be rolled out in Q2 2023. Supported by the world-leading SEA and the cutting-edge Qilin batteries, we will be able to offer absolute driving pleasure to our customers”.

“Upholding the principle of delivering solutions with joint efforts, we are dedicated to enabling automakers to build global high-end car brands with leading EV battery technologies and solutions, thus promoting global e-mobility transition,” said Dr. Robin Zeng, founder, and Chairman of CATL. 

Recently, Geely’s subsidiary company Zeekr shared four new images of its second model on its Weibo page, saying, “ZEEKR 009 looking at the world and being born with a heart that is far from the world.”

The car will adopt a 6/7-seat layout, with dual motors with a peak power of 400kW featuring a lithium-ion battery. When air suspension is optional, the height of the car is 1856mm, and when the passive suspension is optional, the height of the car is 1867mm, the filing shows.

Written by Cláudio Afonso | [email protected] | LinkedIn | Twitter

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Cláudio Afonso
Cláudio Afonso is the Founder and Editor of EV, an independent electric vehicle news publication owned by CARBA Investments, the company he founded in early 2021. Between 2022 and 2024 he worked in European corporate communications at Nio, and he returned to lead EV in April 2024. He is based in Portugal.