The idea emerged in the early 2010s. Instead of recharging their electric car at a terminal, motorists could exchange their empty batteries for a full one, at specific stations, in a few minutes. Renault had thus opted for this idea with the Israeli Better Place.
This attempt turned out to be a fiasco, with the bankruptcy of this other start-up in 2013, but the idea of interchangeable batteries was not definitively buried. He has even experienced a second youth in recent months, first on two-wheelers and now in cars.
From Fiat 500 to interchangeable batteries in Madrid
So much so that Stellantis has just announced that it will test this technology in Madrid on a fleet of small self-service electric Fiat 500s with the start-up Ample. This Californian company develops batteries and swapping stations and then deploys them in partnership with Uber VTC in San Francisco. Four stations are already operational in Madrid and nine more are planned.
Composed of small modules, instead of a large 400 kilo package, Ample batteries have the advantage of adapting to the shape of each vehicle. “This simplifies robotic systems and considerably reduces the installation cost of exchange stations,” underlines Khaled Hassounah, CEO of Ample. The idea is that traveling kilometers with these electric vehicles costs “25% less” than with a gasoline model, according to Khaled Hassounah, general director of Ample.
Eliminate the anxiety of running out of fuel
An alternative to charging at a terminal, battery swapping allows the driver of an electric car to stop at a station to change their discharged battery in less than five minutes, as if they were refueling with gasoline. This avoids slow charging at home, or the use of a high-power terminal, which is more expensive and consumes energy. And eliminates the anxiety of running out of fuel. In practice, once the vehicle is parked at a small swap station, a robotic arm passes through its innards to install a new battery.
Nio, Geely, Yamaha
The arrival of the fast charging station model, especially in Tesla with superchargers, also ruled out for a time the idea of battery “swapping”, to use the English term. Since then, the Chinese manufacturer Nio is one of the only ones, along with Ample, to focus on battery replacement. Nio has already opened several hundred exchange stations in China and thirty in Europe (Germany, Norway and Sweden).
Another Chinese manufacturer, Geely, parent of Volvo and Lotus, joined the system at the end of November. Battery swapping has also been developed in the world of two-wheeled vehicles, within the framework of a consortium led by industry giants Honda, Yamaha and Piaggio, as well as manufacturers Samsung and LG.
More mature business model?
Could the idea be profitable in the early 2020s, as opposed to the early 2010s?
“It is not enough to have an idea first, we must respond to fundamental challenges to make it viable,” Khaled Hassounah stressed. Google was not the first search engine.”
The start-up was financed with more than 260 million dollars, with investors such as oil companies Shell, Repsol and Eneos. “It is an economical, flexible and quick-to-implement solution,” said Ricardo Stamatti, vice president of Stellantis’ Charging and Energy division.
The exchange is especially suitable for fleets of urban vehicles (taxis, delivery people), but also for individuals who live in buildings without parking.
If the Stellantis test is conclusive, “perhaps in the future we will have to choose between electric cars with fixed or interchangeable batteries, by subscription,” Ricardo Stamatti predicted.
The manufacturer will work with Ample to integrate these interchangeable batteries in the vehicles of the group’s brands (which brings together Peugeot, Citroën, DS, Fiat, Maserati, Dodge and even Chrysler), while Stellantis aims for 100% electric sales in Europe in 2030 in their private vehicles. The standard Fiat 500 could be the first to offer these swappable batteries as an option, Stamatti noted.
Source: BFM TV
