Can EV Battery Swapping Take Off In The U.S.?

San Francisco-based Ample has brought electric vehicle battery swapping to the U.S. The company was in stealth mode for seven years before launching recently with five swapping stations in the Bay Area. Uber drivers in the area are Ample’s first customers.

The concept isn’t new. A start-up called Better Place launched an EV and battery swapping company after it raised $850 million in venture funding, but it ultimately went bankrupt in 2013. Tesla also demoed battery swapping in 2013 but only opened one station for about a year. Elon Musk said Tesla owners were not interested in it.

Battery swapping is already common in China. Electric vehicle maker Nio, for example, plans to double its network of swapping stations to 500 this year and plans to open stations in Norway as part of its expansion into Europe.

Ample has a different approach, with modular batteries and a focus on fleets. CNBC got an inside look at its headquarters and battery factory in San Francisco to learn how the company plans to bring battery swapping into the mainstream.

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Can EV Battery Swapping Take Off In The U.S.?

[nokidding]

The person who did the sound editing needs to hear this: don’t put annoying ringing in the background. Think about what your job is.

[jamescrud]

"The company went bankrupt even though it had over $1B in funding"

Yes that's what happens when you burn through other peoples money and never turn a profit. Lol.

[gabedarrett]

Just wanted to say that these high quality mini-documentaries don't go unappreciated! Keep 'em coming!

[sareinhart]

This make sense. For a long time, I've thought this is the way to get rid of range anxiety for EVs.

[marcosfuerte]

"We don't want to say how much it cost to build, how many batteries can be charged, and how heavy each battery is." Fantastic.

[abstractedaway]

7:50 For those who aren't sure they want to run exclusively on whatever battery gets swapped in, why not mix the approach? Vehicles could have their own battery capacity plus use Ample's for range extension.

[WASHX]

Batteryless cars would be a great option. You buy the car, and pay for a fully charged battery when needed. You can always own a battery if it makes sense to you.

Another option could be that automakers make fully charged batteries available to their clients wherever they go. Same car brand same battery technology. No issue. No need of lengthy charging operation, no charging stations needed.
Swap your Tesla battery at a Tesla swapping station.
Swap your Chevy battery at a Chevy swapping station...

Finally the government could ask all automakers to standardize the battery design for easy swapping between brands.

There's a lot to say on the vast and developing story

[ThreepwoodFan]

This makes no sense. And Tesla has scrapped that concept.

[FMTF-makemoneyonline]

In the Netherlands a battery swapping station costs 3 million euro.

That's a lot of cars that need to go through, for it to become profitable.

[trinitybricks]

For everyday commute plugin charging is good, only long drivers will need this swapping. semi-tractor-trailer trucks are a good candidate for battery swapping. Also for my personal car, why would I trade a good battery of mine with degraded battery of theirs from swapping place, unless it's a commercial vehicle.

[fyrwerx]

@1:43 I totally disagree... Americans will love battery swap as long as it's fast and convenient.

[mbaxter]

Here I am, a 2013 Nissan Leaf owner that's been investigating a battery replacement for years and coming up disappointed. Seeing those Gen 1 Leafs rolling in to their batteries swapped out, I'm like Oooh! Oooh! Do me! I'll take a battery swap, sure!

[lowreprmax]

Liability issues when there is a problem? Fire? Manufacturer’s fault or the battery company’s fault?

[fredrikstenberg]

In addition, most people forget one of the main advantages with battery swapping:
You will of course also avoid the big common problem with the need of the extremely expensive change of power source when the car is 5 to 10 years old. Not a small issue.
Smart system.

[mattwolf]

I'd rather own my battery, that said, when the battery is really worn out after 8-10 years, I'd like to be able to swap it for a new one for a decent price, I hope this is possible. It would also be nice if 4 or so years down the line a battery with much better range came out and you wanted to upgrade to that.

[dummyxl]

10 minutes? Nio does this in 3 minutes.

Already old tech.

[betelgeuser]

Sharing batteries and the american mindset of ownership does not mix

[noirprncess]

This seems like a great idea to refresh older generation EVS that will be ready for replacement batteries. They should also go after retro-fit cars that are converted to EV.

[chrisbonshor]

That's a very cool concept and I like how it can work for people with limited access to home charging. I think one of the biggest benefits of owning a gas car is that you can go to any gas station and it works. For those of us driving EVs, that level of universality is just not even close to being there. This seems to be a step away from that.

[gzhang]

Battery swap can succeed where limited space makes charging at large scale impossible: NYC, SFC, LA, Hongkong, Shanghai and Japan for examples.