CATL's electric vessel in Fujian

Chinese battery company CATL has expanded its product application outside of electric vehicles to include vessels. CATL is the world's largest electric car and energy storage battery producer.

Tourists can enjoy the night scenery of Ningde, Fujian, by taking the Donghu Zhixing, a vessel that is propelled by electricity. Consists of a CATL battery pack and an electric vehicle supply equipment, it takes three hours to charge the vessel. After that, it can embark on a voyage that lasts for five to six hours.

The ship company says that migratory birds are the reason why they chose to operate an electric vessel at the Donghu Wetland Park. They explain that crude oil vessels could produce pollution and destroy the area's ecosystem.

Separately, the vessel's battery supplier, CATL's headquarters is also in Ningde. At this exhibition hall, visitors can find out about the different types of batteries that the company have developed over the years, including the latest generation of Cell-to-Pack battery system, which supports a vehicle's driving range of more than 1,000 kilometres.

Not far away from the headquarters, there is a CATL's lighthouse factory with the ability to produce one battery cell every second. And the company outsources the production lines to a local manufacturer, visited by Chief Executive John Lee about a month ago. Its operator says about 40% of their order come from CATL and that the factory does not produce every component but rely on overseas imports for some parts.