2024 Fiat 500e first for Stellantis EV battery swap stations

Stellantis is preparing to launch a network of battery swap stations in Europe that will be capable of swapping out and fitting a fully charged battery in less than five minutes.

The new tech developed by San Francisco-based Ample will go live in 2024 in Madrid, Spain, before being rolled out to other European locations.

Initially, the battery swap service will only be available to Free2Move car-share drivers using a specially modified fleet of 100 Fiat 500e EVs.

However, the system is designed to quickly ramp up to allow battery swaps across the Stellantis-owned brands, including Peugeot, Citroen, Jeep and Maserati.

The goal is to swap the EV battery in the same time it takes to fill a full tank of petrol in a combustion vehicle.

Until now, Chinese car-maker NIO has led the battery-swap revolution, with more than 2200 of its Power Swap Stations already in operation in China, with a further five set to be rolled out in Europe.

The beauty of the new Stellantis swap stations is that they are said to be capable of being constructed and fully operational in as little as three days.

“The combination of offering compelling electric vehicles that can also receive a full charge in less than five minutes will help remove the remaining impediments to electric vehicle adoption,” said Ample chief Khaled Hassounah.

“We look forward to working with Stellantis to deploy our joint solution across communities around the world.”

For everything you auto know about EVs, listen to carsales' Watts Under the Bonnet: the electric car podcast

Join the conversation at 

our Facebook page

Or email us at 

editor@carsales.com.au