On July 21, 2025, UCAR Inc. (NASDAQ: UCAR) and UNEX EV B.V. jointly hosted the grand opening ceremony for Southeast Asia’s first operational smart battery-swapping station for new energy vehicles on Phuket Island, Thailand. This project, co-developed with Thai energy giant SUSCO, marks not only the first commercialized battery-swapping station in Southeast Asia but also the world’s first operational smart battery-swapping station for taxis and ride-hailing vehicles outside China. This milestone demonstrates UCAR’s readiness and capability to rapidly deploy its commercial battery-swapping ecosystem across tens of millions of vehicles globally.
The opening ceremony was attended by local Thai government officials, representatives from CP Group, MG, SUSCO, and guests from Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Mr. Pitak Pruittisarikorn, Global CEO of UNEX EV, delivered a keynote speech on behalf of UCAR and UNEX EV under the theme "Smart Swapping, Driving Green Mobility in Southeast Asia". He emphasized:
"The station employs UOTTA™ intelligent battery-swapping technology, featuring standardized, modular hardware design and AI-enhanced station control systems. These innovations significantly increase efficiency and intelligence in battery-swapping operations, laying a critical foundation for the coming era of unmanned and automated mobility."
Battery Swapping Model Gains Market Recognition — A Fully Integrated Ecosystem Praised by Industry Leaders
Mr. Pairoj Srilamul, Chief District Officer of Phuket, stated in his address:
"Phuket is a world-renowned tourist destination, attracting tens of millions of visitors annually. In an era that advocates low-carbon economies and green development, we are pleased to witness UCAR introducing this cutting-edge battery-swapping model. It provides a faster, more convenient, and economically viable path to electrifying commercial road transport. I believe we will see a significant increase in battery-swappable vehicles operating on Phuket roads in the next 2–3 years."
As one of the early adopters of the battery-swapping vehicles, Dr. Akaranan Ariyasripong, CEO of AUTO DRIVE, one of Thailand's largest taxi and ride-hailing operators, said:
"AUTO DRIVE has deployed a fleet of UNEX EV vehicles equipped with UOTTA™ battery-swapping systems for daily taxi and ride-hailing services in Phuket. From an operational perspective, battery-swapping reduces the upfront cost of electric vehicles. Moreover, battery swaps can be completed in just a few minutes, avoiding the need for long charging waits. This saves valuable operational time for drivers and improves fleet efficiency and reliability. AUTO DRIVE will continue expanding its battery-swappable vehicle fleet and extend the service to other cities across Thailand."
Mr. Vorapong, President of the Thailand Taxi Association, remarked after inspecting the station and test-driving the vehicles:
"UCAR’s battery-swapping model is highly suitable for our taxi industry. The battery-swappable UNEX EV-MG model is the most market-appropriate electric taxi I’ve seen—spacious, comfortable, and cost-effective. It provides real benefits to drivers in terms of time and cost savings. Among our association’s more than 60,000 taxis, this model will be a key consideration for future fleet upgrades."
Smart Technology Bridges the "Unmanned Energy Replenishment" Gap in the Robotaxi Era
The intelligent battery-swapping station in Phuket integrates UCAR’s self-developed UOTTA™ technology, powered by AI to enhance data transmission and station control logic. The system significantly improves operational stability and reliability. It supports multi-model compatibility and is pre-integrated with communication channels for future Level 4 autonomous vehicles, turning the vision of "unmanned, automated battery swaps" into reality.
In an interview, Mr. Zhan Xie, Strategic Investor and Co-Chairman of UCAR, a core member of the CP Group family, and the actual controlling shareholder of Fortune Magazine Group (U.S.), commented:
"The UOTTA™ system aligns with the global mobility revolution — ‘smart traffic infrastructure demands second-level energy replenishment for EVs.’ In high-frequency, time-sensitive scenarios like Robotaxi operations, traditional charging models are insufficient. Battery swapping, with its speed, safety, and unmanned potential, is emerging as the mainstream energy solution. The bottleneck for scaling autonomous fleets is no longer just self-driving technology, but autonomous energy replenishment infrastructure."
He further noted that UCAR’s battery-swapping ecosystem is already bridging this critical gap. With its ‘Vehicle–Station–Cloud–Token’ strategic system, UCAR is building a node-based, intelligent, data-driven energy infrastructure network, enabling seamless integration between mobility energy replenishment and energy trading — paving the way for fully autonomous, sustainable smart mobility on a global scale.
Regional Coordination in Southeast Asia — A Three-Continent Ecosystem Taking Shape
Thailand serves as a vital strategic starting point for UCAR’s Southeast Asia expansion. As early as March 2025, UCAR established a joint venture with SUSCO to begin deploying UOTTA™-based smart swapping infrastructure across SUSCO’s network of nearly 1,000 fueling stations throughout Thailand. The JV plans to build a range of battery-swapping facilities for taxis, ride-hailing fleets, buses, and logistics vehicles, accelerating Thailand’s green mobility transformation.
Leveraging its Thai success, UCAR is also launching a second hub in Singapore by introducing its proprietary ESP model. Within three years, UCAR and its partners will deploy 50 UOTTA™ swapping stations, roll out 5,000 battery-swappable EVs, and retrofit 300 existing MG EP taxis to support battery-swapping.
Following the completion of its Southeast Asia and Hong Kong deployments, UCAR has also formed a joint venture named “ELMO” with Portugal’s National Taxi Association (ANTRAL) and announced at ANTRAL’s 50th anniversary event that it is negotiating station development with Galp, a leading European energy provider. Meanwhile, in South America, UCAR will launch its first station in Peru, in collaboration with local ride-hailing platform Ualabee.
As automated and unmanned mobility approaches reality, UCAR is establishing a global network linking clean energy and smart mobility via battery swapping — partnering with governments and industry to drive the creation of an intelligent, green, and efficient energy system, leading the world into a truly sustainable, zero-carbon era of transportation.
