(Yicai) Sept. 30 -- BYD, the world's biggest electric vehicle maker, has begun full production at a new battery base in northwestern China's Shaanxi province, one of the first plants making its second-generation Blade Battery for ultra-fast charging.

The CNY7 billion (USD984 million) facility in Xixian New Area, a development zone between Xi’an and Xianyang, has an annual battery capacity of 16 gigawatt-hours, enough to supply about 700,000 new energy vehicles, according to local media reports. It is expected to generate CNY8 billion in annual output value.

BYD unveiled its second-generation Blade Battery and flash-charging technology in March, when the Xixian facility began trial production. The battery can charge from 10 percent to 70 percent in five minutes under normal temperatures, according to BYD.

The almost 89-hectare Xixian base was built at a rapid pace. Shaanxi is already home to BYD’s largest vehicle manufacturing hub by output capacity, with its Xi’an operations capable of producing more than one million vehicles a year.

Despite its relatively modest capacity, the Xixian base will help expand Shaanxi from a major BYD vehicle manufacturing center into a hub for next-generation batteries and flash-charging technology, Feng Lei, president of Huoshi Chuangzao Industrial Research Institute, told Yicai. Its 16 GWh of capacity will mainly serve BYD’s internal needs rather than external customers for now, he added.

BYD is also building a new energy vehicle parts project in Xixian New Area, according to local news outlet Xi’an Release. The roughly 81-hectare project will support BYD’s vehicle manufacturing operations and further increase the local supply of key components.

Editor: Emmi Laine