宁德时代钠电池“预定”广汽、长安、江淮

Core Viewpoint - CATL is advancing its sodium-ion battery technology from commercial vehicles to a larger application in passenger cars, with a focus on extreme cold testing and battery swapping models [2][4]. Group 1: Sodium-ion Battery Development - CATL's sodium-ion battery brand "Sodium New" will begin extreme cold public testing for passenger vehicles next week, with the Chang'an Auchan model participating first [2]. - The sodium-ion battery is expected to be installed in the GAC Aion UT super model by the second quarter of this year, with a starting price of 49,900 yuan for the battery rental version and 89,900 yuan for the complete vehicle [3]. - The sodium-ion battery has a key specification of 175 Wh/kg energy density, maintaining 90% usable capacity at -40°C, and a cycle life exceeding 10,000 times, positioning it as a scalable production solution [5]. Group 2: Overcoming Challenges - CATL is addressing two main challenges for sodium-ion battery scalability: the stringent verification of low-temperature performance and charging efficiency in passenger vehicles, and the balance between energy density, cost, and user experience in the new chemical system [4]. - The company is also pushing to establish production rhythms in commercial vehicle scenarios before fully entering the passenger vehicle market, having launched the Tianxing II light commercial solution and related sodium-ion battery products [6]. Group 3: Battery Swapping Network Expansion - The expansion of the battery swapping network may enhance the replicability of the sodium-ion technology route, with CATL disclosing the completion of 1,325 battery swapping stations and plans to build over 3,000 stations in more than 140 cities by 2026 [7]. - The strategy emphasizes that "sodium-ion deployment" does not rely solely on one-time battery sales but can leverage the network effects of "battery asset operation + refueling infrastructure," which is particularly crucial for the price-sensitive passenger vehicle market [7].