Gas stations have long been built around one basic idea: pull in, refuel quickly, grab a snack, and get back on the road. CarNews China reports that BYD and Chinese petroleum giant Sinopec are now trying to apply that same formula to electric vehicles, starting with a former filling station in Shanghai that has been converted into a high-powered EV charging hub.
The newly transformed site uses BYD's Flash Charging technology and includes 12 charging stalls, a rest area, and an Easy Joy convenience store operated by Sinopec. It is the first station the two companies have converted and jointly operated under their partnership, with more locations expected to follow.
BYD and Sinopec have been cooperating since 2024, when they agreed to work together on charging infrastructure, energy supply chains, and retail services. The Shanghai project shows how that relationship could reshape some existing gas stations as EV adoption continues to grow in China.
Rather than building entirely new charging plazas from scratch, the companies can reuse locations that already have good road access, convenience stores, restrooms, and established customer traffic. That could make former fuel stations particularly useful as EV charging sites.
The biggest attraction is BYD's Flash Charging system, which is designed to dramatically reduce the amount of time drivers spend plugged in. The automaker says compatible vehicles can charge from 10 to 70 percent in around five minutes and from 10 to 97 percent in roughly nine minutes.
Those figures apply to vehicles designed to support BYD's latest charging architecture, so drivers should not expect every EV to pull into one of these stations and immediately accept the full charging rate. Still, the goal is to make a charging stop feel much closer to the familiar experience of filling a gasoline tank.
The Shanghai site has six large T-shaped charging units, with two cables on each unit for a total of 12 charging positions. The arrangement resembles a traditional forecourt more closely than many parking-lot-based DC fast-charging installations.
Sinopec already operates a huge retail network, giving BYD access to sites where much of the supporting infrastructure is already in place. Instead of finding new land, constructing stores, and creating customer facilities, the partnership can adapt locations that were designed from the beginning for short roadside stops.
The Shanghai hub retains an Easy Joy convenience store that operates around the clock, while the customer lounge includes tables, reclining chairs, and even a basic health-monitoring station. Its location near the Hongqiao transportation district also places the chargers close to one of Shanghai's busiest travel areas.
The site's underground fuel tanks may have been removed to create space for battery storage equipment. BYD has not publicly detailed every part of the conversion, so some specifics about how the old fuel infrastructure was replaced are unclear.
BYD's Flash Charging equipment uses integrated Blade battery packs to reduce the strain placed directly on the electrical grid. Each charger contains four lithium iron phosphate battery packs with a combined capacity of either 169 or 185 kWh.
Those batteries can store energy between charging sessions and then release it rapidly when a compatible vehicle plugs in. BYD says the system can therefore operate with a much lower continuous grid connection than its peak charging output might otherwise suggest.
That buffering approach could become increasingly important as ultra-fast chargers become more powerful. Installing chargers capable of delivering enormous short bursts of power is easier if every location does not require an equally enormous permanent connection to the grid.
The Shanghai location is only the beginning, with Sinopec saying additional stations are expected to receive similar treatment. BYD is also expanding Flash Charging support across both battery-electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids.
Oil companies already own some of the most strategically located roadside real estate in the world, and converting selected fuel stations into charging hubs could give them a way to remain relevant as vehicle energy demand gradually changes. Rather than making gas stations disappear overnight, the transition could simply change what flows through them.
Would you rather charge at a converted gas station with a store and lounge, or at a dedicated EV charging plaza? If nine-minute charging becomes common, would charging time still be a major reason to avoid buying an EV? Let us know in the comments.
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