March 12, 2026 | 08:01 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A Chinese automaker has introduced the world's first electric vehicle (EV) powered by a sodium-ion (Na-ion) battery, a technology that has the potential to become an alternative to the lithium-ion batteries currently used in electric vehicles.
The car is the Changan Nevo A06, jointly developed by Changan Automobile and Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (CATL), the world's largest battery manufacturer. According to a Live Science report, the vehicle, also known as the Qiyuan A06 in the Chinese domestic market, is the first mass-produced passenger car to use a Na-ion battery.
The Nevo A06 uses a 45-kilowatt-hour CATL Naxtra battery, first introduced in April 2025. CATL representatives said the battery can provide a range of up to 248 miles (about 400 kilometers) on a single charge.
In addition to range, the Na-ion battery also offers faster charging speeds than lithium-ion batteries. Changan representatives said the car can be charged to 80 percent in just about 15 minutes.
For comparison, this charging time is about twice as fast as the Tesla Model Y, which takes longer to reach 80 percent charge on a 100-kilowatt charger, according to data from the electric vehicle charging website Electra.
The Changan Nevo A06 is expected to launch in mid-2026 and will be one of the first electric vehicles to commercially utilize sodium-ion battery technology.
Scientists believe that Na-ion batteries have the potential to lower battery production costs and improve safety compared to lithium-ion batteries. This technology is also considered more resistant to extreme temperatures, allowing electric vehicles to maintain performance in both extremely cold and hot weather conditions.
In the initial announcement of the Naxtra product, CATL stated that the battery can operate at temperatures ranging from -40°C to 70°C and still retain about 90 percent of its usable charge even at the lowest temperatures.
Currently, Na-ion batteries have a lower energy capacity than Li-ion batteries, making them more commonly used in grid-scale energy storage systems. However, with the advent of vehicles like the Nevo A06, this technology is starting to be considered as a new alternative for electric vehicles in the future.
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