Elon Musk to demonstrate Tesla battery swapping tech on June 20th

Tesla is to show off its new battery swap technology at an event at its California design studio on June 20th. Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter to announce the event, confirming reports that the company would soon allow Tesla S owners to drive longer distances without needing to wait for the battery to charge at a local Supercharger station.

As GigaOM reports, Tesla will likely unveil a redesigned chassis that will offer easy access to a removable battery. When a battery loses charge, it can be swapped with a fully charged battery in minutes (roughly the same time as it takes to fill a car with petrol). In a filing with the SEC in May, the company said it planned to introduce a way to rapidly switch Model S battery packs and develop “specialized public facilities” to perform the swaps. This could mean that Tesla will start installing battery swap stations around Supercharger locations, making it easier for owners to replace drained batteries and ensure they can immediately be charged and reused.