The battery pack, called "Wuling Red 1", is 148 mm thick, which SAIC-GM-Wuling said is the thinnest battery for commercial vehicles.

During the charging process, it has a temperature control system that automatically shuts down when the battery temperature is below 35°C and starts cooling down when it is above 38°C, thus keeping the battery in the optimal temperature range.

The battery pack uses cells that have a long life, with more than 80 percent of its life remaining after more than 4,000 complete charge/discharge cycles, SAIC-GM-Wuling said.

The cells did not catch fire or explode in pin-prick tests, SAIC Wuling said.

The battery pack has been mass-produced and will be first carried in Wuling's upcoming new energy commercial vehicles, it said.

SAIC-GM-Wuling, a joint venture between SAIC, GM and Liuzhou Wuling Automobile, is headquartered in Liuzhou, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, in southwestern China.

It sells vehicles built on the GSEV (Global Small Electric Vehicle) architecture in China, including the Mini EV, KiWi EV, Nano EV, and Air EV.

In addition to these all-electric models, SAIC-GM-Wuling also sells fuel-powered SUVs, MPVs, and van models.

SAIC-GM-Wuling aims to sell 700,000 new energy vehicles (NEVs) in 2024, the company said on January 23 in a post published on its WeChat account.

SAIC-GM-Wuling aims to sell 700,000 NEVs in 2024