Chinese companies launch first series-production vehicle with sodium-ion battery
The “salt battery” is gaining momentum: Chinese automaker Changan has partnered with battery producer CATL to present the world’s first series-production vehicle equipped with a sodium-ion battery. The Nevo A06 model is scheduled to go on sale in mid-2026 and marks a significant step in diversifying battery technologies for electric vehicles. CATL serves as the exclusive partner for sodium-ion technology and will supply its Naxtra batteries across all Changan Group brands, including AVATR, Deepal, Qiyuan, and UNI.
Sodium-ion technology uses sodium instead of lithium as cathode material. Sodium, a component of table salt, is abundantly available and can be extracted more cost-effectively and with lower environmental impact. Production also enables the use of aluminum for current collectors, creating additional cost advantages. Existing manufacturing facilities for lithium-ion batteries can be retrofitted with relatively modest effort. However, sodium-ion batteries have a significant drawback: considerably lower energy density. While modern lithium batteries achieve values exceeding 250 watt-hours per kilogram, the new technology delivers 175 watt-hours per kilogram.
Performance in extreme temperatures
CATL’s Naxtra batteries, with their cell-to-pack system and intelligent battery management, currently enable ranges exceeding 400 kilometers in pure electric operation. Future improvements are expected to deliver ranges of 500 to 600 kilometers for pure electric vehicles and 300 to 400 kilometers for hybrid variants. The technology demonstrates particular strengths in extreme cold: at minus 30 degrees Celsius, it delivers nearly three times the discharge power compared to conventional lithium iron phosphate batteries. Even at minus 40 degrees, over 90 percent of capacity remains available, and batteries operate stably down to minus 50 degrees. Stress tests involving mechanical damage such as crushing, drilling, and cutting have shown that the batteries neither produce smoke nor catch fire, while continuing to deliver energy.
The global sodium-ion battery market is estimated by Precedence Research to grow from 1.39 billion US dollars in 2025 to 6.83 billion US dollars by 2034. Parallel to the market launch, CATL plans a massive expansion of its Choco-Swap infrastructure: by 2026, more than 3,000 battery-swap stations are to be established across 140 Chinese cities, with over 600 in colder northern regions. The stations simultaneously serve as grid storage and enable automated battery exchange or expansion within minimal time.
Standardized swap system becomes established
The Choco-Swap system operates with standardized battery modules in Choco-SEB format, which can be flexibly combined. Most compatible vehicles support one to three modules, allowing users to choose between city range and long-distance configuration as needed. CATL specifies a swap duration of 77 seconds for its latest generation system. In practice, manufacturers like Nio report swap times between three and five minutes, which still compares to a conventional refueling process. The network is currently expanding from around 1,000 to 3,000 locations.
EV manufacturer Nio, which entered into a strategic partnership with CATL eleven months ago and ranks among approximately 100 partners in the Choco-Swap ecosystem, has already documented intensive system usage. On February 21, at the end of Chinese New Year celebrations, Nio set a new record with 175,976 battery swaps in a single day. Since 2016, CATL has invested the equivalent of 1.23 billion euros in sodium-ion technology development and produced around 300,000 test cells. More than 300 developers, including 20 PhD holders, are working on advancing the technology from laboratory to series production maturity.
