September 29, 2026 - EVgo Goes To 750-kW Charging

This is the Telemetry Transportation Daily for September 29, 2026, and I'm Sam Abuelsamid, Vice President of Market Research for Telemetry. 

Over the past year, we've seen numerous announcements from Chinese companies about the introduction of EV charging systems topping 1 MW, including CATL, BYD, and Geely, and they are rapidly building out networks of these much faster chargers. BYD has also announced that the second generation of its subcompact Seagull that has gained attention for its sub-$10,000 price point will include flash charging capability that can replenish the battery to 70% in just 5 minutes and to 97% in 9 minutes. 

Meanwhile, here in the U.S., where none of these Chinese EVs are available, the fastest charging speeds are topped at near 400 kW and most EVs are stuck between 150 and 200 kW. EVgo is preparing to raise the bar with its new generation of charging hardware coming in 2027 that will deliver up to 750 kW. That's still half of what's available in China, but the equipment is being designed to be upgradeable. In addition to the higher peak power, the dispensers are equipped with dynamic power sharing that can automatically shift delivery between the two cables based on the needs of the vehicles that are plugged in.  The 750 kW can be split to deliver 400 kW to a BMW iX3 and 350 kW to a Chevy Silverado or 50 kW to an older Chevrolet Bolt. The goal is to eliminate the need for drivers to find a charger that's not being shared with another car to get maximum charging. Just plug into any available connector and get whatever your vehicle can absorb. 

Another goal for EVgo is to increase the availability of SAE J3400/NACS connectors. By 2027, virtually all new EVs sold in the U.S. should have NACS ports, and almost all of the existing EVs can support NACS with an adapter. EVgo hasn't announced specific timing for when the new chargers will be deployed, but they should start appearing in 2027.  Now it's up to the rest of the network operators to continue increasing speed and reliability, and automakers to build vehicles that can take advantage of these faster charging capabilities so that more consumers will see electrification as a viable option. 

Thanks for listening.