Since the replacement power station was first written into the government work report in 2020, the promotion of the pilot of the new energy vehicle replacement mode has also become an important part of releasing the consumption potential in key areas. As a representative of the car company that pushes the power station and the vehicle-electricity separation model, WEILAI Automobile has an average of more than 20,000 daily power replacement orders in 2021, and the cumulative power exchange service has exceeded 5.9 million times.
Whether it is comparing sales data or analyzing the driving effect on the industrial chain, "new energy vehicles" have undisputedly become the key words of China's auto market in 2021.
One of the most obvious evidences is that as the production and sales of new energy vehicles have reached a new high, supporting facilities such as charging piles and replacement power stations have accelerated their layout. According to public data from the China Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Promotion Alliance (EVCIPA), as of November 2021, Star Charging has launched 246,000 charging piles, 235,000 special calls and 196,000 State Grid. The charging network led by car companies such as NIO Power, Tesla, and Kaimeis has also increased the speed and intensity of the layout of charging facilities in 2021, as of December 24, 2021, Tesla has accumulated 1,000+ supercharging stations and 8,000+ supercharge piles; Xiaopeng Automobile has launched 111 supercharge stations in November 2021, with a cumulative number of supercharging stations reaching 661.
It is worth noting that since the replacement power station was first written into the government work report during the two sessions of the National People's Congress in 2020, the promotion of the new energy vehicle power exchange model pilot has also become an important part of releasing the consumption potential in key areas.
As a representative of the car company that pushes the power station and the vehicle-electricity separation model, WEILAI Automobile has an average of more than 20,000 daily power replacement orders in 2021, and the cumulative power exchange service has exceeded 5.9 million times.
The reporter learned that as of December 31, 2021, WEILAI has laid out 777 substations across the country, including 205 highway substations; in addition, there are 605 supercharging stations, 626 destination charging stations, and access to more than 450,000 third-party charging piles.
An obvious truth is that as the new energy vehicle market has shifted from policy-driven to market-driven, only by allowing new energy vehicles to have a better use environment will more consumers be willing to choose new energy vehicles. Therefore, how to use the power exchange mode to solve the problems of "charging difficulty" and "mileage anxiety" of new energy vehicles, and whether the power exchange mode can stand on the outlet of "new infrastructure" and "carbon peaking and carbon neutrality" has become a mandatory test in China's new energy vehicle market in 2022.
Why can the power exchange mode stand on the "wind outlet"
According to data released by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, the production and sales of new energy vehicles in 2021 reached 3.545 million units and 3.521 million units, respectively, an increase of 1.6 times year-on-year. In addition, the market share of new energy vehicles increased to 13.4%, further indicating that the new energy vehicle market has shifted from policy-driven to market-driven.
There is no doubt that the rapid growth of new energy vehicle sales has put forward higher requirements for the charging and replacing service network. Especially during holidays such as National Day, the pressure of people's concentrated travel amplifies the problem of "charging difficulties".
"Compared with the traditional charging mode, the power replacement station is more efficient and faster. If the layout of the substation is reasonable, it only takes about 5 minutes to change the battery once, which is much faster than charging. Yang Xiaolin, a senior auto media person, analyzed that the charging and replacing service is also an important part of the experience of using new energy vehicles, and those car brands that provide users with fast charging and replacing services have a better chance to win the favor of consumers." Many charging piles that have been used for a long time have already seen the facilities are old, the safety management is missing and occupied, so the replacement power station, as a new species, should do a good job in facility maintenance and power exchange services. ”
In addition, because of the fast power exchange speed, the power station can improve service efficiency. "According to our calculations, a substation covers an area of only 4 parking spaces and can provide up to 312 power exchanges per day, which is more utilized than the land used to install charging piles in parking spaces." In a Weilai replacement power station near beijing's north fifth ring road, the staff told reporters that the power exchange mode can use the city's peak and trough power supply to implement phased charging, and the power distribution advantages are obvious, which can improve the efficiency of energy utilization.
"From a technical point of view, there is no obvious bottleneck in the promotion of the power exchange model, and in the final analysis, it is still necessary to consider whether it is economically cost-effective." Pan Helin, executive dean of the Digital Economy Research Institute of Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, said that only by clearly calculating the "economic account" of the replacement power station can it be promoted on a larger scale.
In fact, the promotion of substations is inseparable from the exploration of a new business model of "separation of vehicles and electricity".
"To do a good job in the energy supply mode of new energy vehicles, it can be combined to cope with different travel needs." A person in charge of a new energy investment company that has long been concerned about the power exchange model said that the realization of "separation of vehicle and electricity" can not only allow consumers to harvest more benefits, but also allow car companies to get rid of their burdens and move forward lightly.
Taking NIO's BaaS model as an example, through the vehicle-to-electricity separation model, the battery is owned and managed by the asset company and leased to the consumer, and the purchaser only needs to pay the purchase fee and battery rent of the vehicle without the battery. This allows consumers to lower the purchase threshold by tens of thousands of yuan at a time, while not having to bear the loss of battery depreciation and upgrading the battery at a lower cost. According to reports, as of November 30, 2021, NIO has provided battery upgrade services for 8,047 users (including permanent and year-by-year flexible upgrades); on December 5, 2021, NIO announced that the flexible upgrade of batteries on a monthly basis was fully opened.
"As a consuming chemical, batteries should not be completely tied to the performance and service life of a car, which is very unscientific." For example, the domestic battery technology continues to upgrade and iterate, the energy density of the battery may be greatly improved in a short period of time, if the car is bound to the battery, those customers who buy first will definitely complain. For example, he told reporters that the ideal state of new energy vehicles is that customers can choose to rent batteries of different specifications according to each different travel needs, "so that it can be as convenient as refueling."
Power exchange mode or become a "hand" for China's new energy vehicle companies
It is worth noting that in addition to auto companies such as Weilai Automobile and BAIC New Energy, more and more traditional energy giants have entered the market to participate in the promotion of the power exchange model.
Following Sinopec and PetroChina, which began to lay out the construction of electric vehicle refueling facilities across the country, Shell Group signed a strategic cooperation agreement with NIO at the end of November. In the Chinese market, the two sides plan to build 100 substations by 2025. In Europe, the two sides plan to start the construction and operation of the substation pilot work from 2022. In terms of charging facilities, Shell's European charging network will be open to NIO users.
"Carbon neutrality is a global challenge that requires broad, multifaceted global solutions. I am very excited about the cooperation between Shell and NIO in Europe and China, and the breadth of cooperation between the two sides and the value that can be created for consumers together. Ke Yifan, Executive Vice President of Shell Group's Global Retail Business, admitted that Shell is the world's largest oil retailer, but it is also committed to becoming one of the world's leading charging service providers.
Pan and Lin analysis said that in the context of accelerating the global decarbonization process and China's commitment to carbon neutrality, traditional energy companies such as Sinopec and Shell must also consider "eggs should not be placed in the same basket" and accelerate their entry into the new energy track.
"By cooperating with new car-making forces such as Nio Motors, traditional energy companies hope to maintain their market position in the field of new energy." He said that on the one hand, traditional energy companies use their own network resources to replace power stations, which conforms to the trend of the era of developing new energy vehicles; on the other hand, the entry of the "national team" of the oil system also highlights China's determination to reduce carbon emissions.
"The cooperation between NIO and Shell is not limited to the Chinese market, which means that the power exchange model may become part of the Chinese solution to develop new energy vehicles, adding advantages for Chinese car companies to open up overseas markets." Yang Xiaolin believes that in order to maintain long-term competitiveness, many electric vehicle companies choose to build their own energy supplementary networks, and Weilai and Xiaopeng are among the models.
In his view, although the consumption habits and use scenarios are different, the development of new energy vehicles has its objective laws, "whether it is charging mode or power exchange mode, infrastructure that meets the needs of users is the prerequisite for large-scale promotion of new energy vehicles." Some analysts believe that thanks to the technical route of products that can separate vehicle and electricity, a more comprehensive charging and replacing system and a well-known service level, NIO Power is expected to become one of the "golden signboards" of the Nio brand to attract users.
It is worth noting that when entering the Norwegian market before, WEIO specifically announced that it will build 20 second-generation substations in Norway, covering the top 5 cities in Norway and major high-speeds, "bringing full-scene charging and replacement services to the Norwegian market". In China, NIO plans to build a high-speed power exchange network based on "five vertical, three horizontal and four metropolitan areas" before the Spring Festival in 2022. By 2022, NIO plans to build more than 1,300 substations, more than 6,000 overcharge piles, and more than 10,000 destination charging piles in China.
Some analysts believe that strong infrastructure capacity, denser population distribution, early pilots in the field of public travel and other policy dividends have made it possible to commercialize the power exchange model in China on a large scale. Once the construction and operating costs can be controlled within a reasonable range, there will be more room for imagination in the power exchange mode that is faster and more efficient.
China Youth Daily, China Youth Network reporter Xu Yajie Source: China Youth Daily
Source: China Youth Daily Travel Weekly
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