Within just one and a half years of its inception, the startup has attained the coveted unicorn status, riding on a boom of NEV-related innovations, such as lithium battery and fast-charge technology
Greater Bay Technology (Chinese: 巨湾技研), which specializes in the production, development and sales of super-fast charge lithium battery, has completed a Series A round of financing recently for an undisclosed amount, with a post-money valuation of CNY 8 billion (USD 1.26 billion), making it a unicorn.
Established in September 2020, the startup was incubated by Guangzhou Automobile Group (2238: HK) and also received funding from Tencent Investment, three GF Securities (Chinese: 广发证券) subsidiaries, BOC & Utrust (Chinese: 中银粤财) and Scheme Capital (Chinese: 势能资本). Tencent has a 2.26% stake in Greater Bay Technology.
The company developed its eXtreme Fast Charge technology in April 2021 and installed it on GAC Motor’s ALON V PLUS EV in September 2021, a sign that the technology has reached mass production.
The eXtreme Fast Charge lithium battery has 3C fast-charge capability. Combined with high-power overcharge equipment, it is able to be recharged 0-80% in 15 minutes.
Moreover, Greater Bay also debuted a 6C fast-charger that is installed on AION V and can replenish the car’s battery from 0 to 80% full in eight minutes.
According to the Development Plan for The New Energy Vehicle Industry (2021-2025), a national blueprint, China has set the target to raise the proportion of new energy vehicles (NEVs) to 25% of its new car sales by 2025. With the battery making up 40% of a NEV’s cost, the EV battery industry has huge market potential in China.
Meanwhile, EV Battery companies are involved in a dog-eat-dog competition, with tech giants including Xiaomi and Huawei having announced their car-making plans.
Xiaomi has invested in EV battery companies such as CALB (Chinese: 中创新航)， SVOLT (Chinese: 蜂巢能源), and Ganfeng Lithium (Chinese: 赣锋锂业), while Huawei has pumped money into EV battery startups such as WELION (Chinese: 卫蓝新能源) and HiNa Battery (Chinese: 中科海纳).