Octopus and CATL team up to unlock electric trucking across Europe

Octopus Energy and CATL have announced a joint venture to develop a European network of battery-swapping hubs for electric heavy goods vehicles, aiming to speed up the transition to zero-emission road freight.

The partnership, unveiled at Octopus Energy’s Energy Tech Summit, will establish a new company called Swaptopus, combining CATL’s battery-swapping technology with Octopus’s energy, software and trading capabilities.

The venture plans to open its first UK battery-swapping mega hubs in 2027, with more than 30 sites planned across Europe by 2035. Each hub is expected to serve thousands of electric lorries daily by enabling depleted batteries to be exchanged for fully charged units in minutes, significantly reducing vehicle downtime compared with conventional charging.

The partners estimate the network could support more than 300,000 electric trucks once fully deployed and unlock over £30 billion of private investment while helping reduce Europe’s reliance on imported fossil fuels.

Swaptopus will build on CATL’s experience of deploying battery-swapping infrastructure at scale in China, while leveraging Octopus Energy’s pan-European energy supply, flexibility, trading and customer service capabilities.

“Battery swapping changes that. Instead of waiting for hours, trucks can be back on the road in minutes. By combining Octopus’s software and energy expertise with CATL’s world-class battery technology, we’re making clean freight practical at scale across Europe.”

“We have field-proven this technology in China, and we are delighted to bring it to the UK and Europe as part of our joint venture with Octopus.

“Together, our expertise in battery swapping, B2G and energy storage, paired with Octopus’s AI-powered energy trading and management technologies, will speed up the electrification of road transport across the region.”

The partners believe battery swapping can overcome one of the biggest obstacles to electrifying heavy-duty transport by allowing trucks to return to the road within minutes rather than spending hours connected to charging infrastructure.

In addition to supporting freight decarbonisation, the batteries housed at swapping stations will also provide energy storage services. Charging and discharging batteries in response to grid demand could enable the hubs to operate as virtual power plants, helping balance electricity networks while reducing energy costs.

William Rowe, CEO and founder of Swaptopus, said: “We believe the future of land-based transport is electric and autonomous, and battery swapping is a massive part of the enabling infrastructure. Not only does it significantly reduce downtime but since the batteries at the swapping stations can be charged and discharged when the grid needs it, they act as a virtual power plant and in turn lower costs for consumers.”

Alongside the new freight initiative, Octopus Energy and CATL said they are also exploring opportunities to expand Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) technology across CATL’s global automotive partnerships. The companies aim to enable millions of future electric vehicles to supply electricity back to the grid during periods of peak demand, creating additional flexibility for energy systems while reducing costs for consumers.