- Mitsubishi joins a Tokyo pilot deploying 150+ EVs with swappable batteries.
- Ample’s tech enables 5-minute battery swaps via modular stations.
- Project backed by the Tokyo Government and targets commercial fleets.
The Japanese car manufacturer Mitsubishi will participate in a multi-year experiment commencing in Tokyo later this year, which will include over 150 electric commercial vehicles (EVs) with battery-swapping capabilities and 14 modular battery swap stations.
The pilot battery swapping initiative involves a partnership among Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation (MFTBC), Mitsubishi Motors Corporation, the Californian battery tech firm Ample, and Yamato Transport, set to launch in September.
The pilot program will launch various commercial electric vehicles designed for battery swapping, featuring MFTBC’s eCanter light-duty truck and Mitsubishi Motors’ Minicab EV.
The vehicles will be utilized to support commercial delivery fleets throughout Tokyo, starting with Yamato Transport, Japan's largest shipping and Logistics Company, as the first significant client of the project.
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Ample will supply its battery swapping technology for involved EV platforms and will also set up and manage the swapping stations, which the company asserts can fully charge fleet vehicles in under five minutes.
Every battery exchange station is small and can be set up rapidly, in less than a week, needing no substantial infrastructure, and is fueled by renewable energy.
It is also anticipated that Ample’s swapping stations could eventually offer grid services, like storing renewable energy. The multi-year study is funded by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government via its Technology Development Support Project for Advancing New Energy.