Rivaling Huawei and BYD? Mercedes Unveils Flash Charging Technology, Heralding the Era of “Megawatt Charging”

As the construction of high-quality charging infrastructure becomes an important trend in the development of the new energy vehicle industry, the era of "megawatt charging" may have quietly arrived.

On September 8th, at the Nardò racetrack in Italy, the Mercedes-AMG GT XX concept car showcased more than twenty new records. At the same time, Mercedes officially unveiled its first megawatt-level charging technology—with charging power exceeding 1 megawatt.

According to reporters, the AMG GT XX concept car achieved a maximum charging power of 1,041 kW during megawatt-level charging tests, maintaining a charging power of 1 megawatt for approximately 2.5 minutes. From the perspective of driving range, through the CCS standard charging cable, this system can transfer 17.3 kWh of energy in just one minute, equivalent to an increase of 125 kilometers (WLTP) in driving range. In other words, charging for one second provides over 2 kilometers of additional range.

Earlier, Huawei made the latest progress in megawatt supercharging—the "Sichuan Yuanqi Starlight Heavy Truck Megawatt Supercharging Station" was put into operation in Beichuan Qiang Autonomous County, Mianyang City, Sichuan Province. It is reported that the station is designed with a power capacity of 100MW and has put into use 18 supercharging bays of 1.44MW and 108 liquid-cooled supercharging bays of 600kW. It can serve 700 electric heavy trucks per day, with a daily charging capacity of over 300,000 kWh after going online.

“‘The low efficiency of 1C fast charging’ and ‘the underdeveloped charging network for heavy-duty trucks’ are restricting the transition of electric heavy trucks from closed scenarios to all-scenario applications, and have become bottlenecks for the full electrification of logistics. Megawatt ultra-fast charging technology is the key to solving this problem,” said Meng Shaoyun, President of Huawei Digital Power China.

According to incomplete statistics by CLS reporters, since 2025, multiple vehicle manufacturers, technology companies, and charging enterprises have successively announced progress in megawatt-level charging technologies and collaborations. In addition to the aforementioned companies, BYD, Zeekr, TELD, and Star Charge are also included. Among them, BYD unveiled its "Megawatt Flash Charge" technology in March this year. According to Wang Chuanfu, Chairman and President of BYD Group, the "Megawatt Flash Charge" can achieve a maximum charging voltage of 1000V, a maximum charging current of 1000A, a maximum charging rate of 10C, a peak charging power of 1MW, and a top charging speed of 2 kilometers per second or 407 kilometers in 5 minutes. Meanwhile, according to Hou Jinlong, Director of Huawei and President of Huawei Digital Power, Huawei's megawatt-level charging product can deliver a maximum charging current of 2400A and a maximum power of 1.5MW, enabling a recharge of 20 kWh per minute and a full charge in just 15 minutes. According to their plan, Huawei's next goal is to achieve a "single-gun 3 megawatts" charging solution.

In July this year, the General Office of the National Development and Reform Commission, along with three other departments, issued the "Notice on Promoting the Scientific Planning and Construction of High-Power Charging Facilities." The notice states that charging operators should enhance the technological upgrading of charging equipment to improve the operational efficiency and service life of high-power charging facilities. It encourages the adoption of a power allocation strategy that prioritizes high-power charging for split-type equipment. Efforts should be accelerated to localize key components such as high-voltage silicon carbide modules and main control chips, promoting an overall upgrade of the charging industry chain, including components, system integration, and operational services. For application scenarios involving large-capacity, high-rate power batteries such as electric heavy trucks, electric ships, and electric aircraft, research and pilot applications of single-gun megawatt-level charging technology should be conducted.

"Although high-power DC charging piles have higher technical requirements for the power grid and equipment, and their current proportion is still significantly lower than that of AC charging piles, it is certain that increasing the deployment of high-power DC fast charging has become an inevitable trend," said an industry insider.