Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, China’s leading privately-controlled automotive technology group and Chinese premium EV maker NIO signed a strategic partnership agreement on battery swapping in Hangzhou. Both parties agreed to carry out comprehensive cooperation on battery standards, battery swapping technology, battery swapping network expansion and operation, swappable model development, and battery asset management.
With preferential policies and an expanding network, battery swapping is being embraced by more EV users. NIO’s “chargeable, swappable, upgradeable” service system provides private car users with the best recharging solution in the industry. With years of experience in providing battery swapping for commercial vehicles, Geely’s subsidiary Yiyi Power is now looking to expand its presence in more cities.
Based on the principles of strategic recognition, sharing, and openness, both parties will complement each other’s advantages on the basis of their existing businesses and strategically cooperate in the area of battery swapping. In accordance with the agreement and through a “co-investment, co-construction, shared, co-operative” model, both parties will co-develop two battery swapping standards for private cars and commercial vehicles, accelerate the development and promotion of battery swapping technology on the vehicle end, and expand the operational scale of battery swapping to provide more convenient, comprehensive and safe services for users with different needs. Both parties will establish an efficient battery asset management mechanism, build a unified battery swap operation, and develop battery swappable vehicles compatible with each other’s battery swap systems.
The partnership, in line with China’s development direction of new infrastructure and new energy, will further standardize battery swapping technology, increase the scale of the battery swap network, and accelerate the low-carbon transformation of the automotive industry.
“Green sustainable development and carbon neutrality have become a global consensus,” said Eric LI, Founder and Chairman of Geely Holding, “As one of the most innovative methods for recharging electric vehicles, the future development of battery swapping technology requires the joint efforts of all parties in the industry to advance it. Geely Yiyi Power has achieved positive results in the operation across multiple cities nationwide and is continuing to grow. Through this strategic cooperation in battery swapping, the two parties will strengthen their cooperation in the battery swapping industry chain, accelerate the adoption of unified standards, expand the ecosystem for battery swapping and charging, support the low-carbon transformation and high-quality development of the automotive industry, and offer a better electric mobility experience for users.”
“NIO and Geely share a profound understanding of battery swapping and have been dedicated to the investment in the battery swapping technology and network for private cars and commercial vehicles with rich experience in swapping service and operations,” said William LI, Founder, Chairman and CEO of NIO, “As a leading company in the Chinese automotive market, Geely Holding’s rapid development in the new energy field is impressive. This strategic partnership will further popularize battery swapping, bring quality and convenient battery swapping experience to more users and contribute to the steady development of the smart EV industry. We will continue to advance the construction of NIO’s battery-swapping network for NIO users, continually enhancing the charging experience for our users, and collaborating with partners to initiate the construction of a battery-swapping network for multi-brand sharing.”
