Automotive News Europe — 2023-12-15
Automotive Industry
Chinese electric-vehicle maker Nio will launch its affordable Firefly brand in Europe in 2025, Lihong Qin, its president said.
The aspiring rival to Tesla launched its premium models in Norway in 2021 and entered Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark in October last year.
The Firefly brand will offer smaller models for families, Qin said. He did not give details of pricing.
Nio currently competes with EVs offered by premium carmakers including BMW and Mercedes-Benz. The automaker's prices in Europe range from around €50,000 to €91,000 , depending on the vehicle's range and whether customers buy or rent the battery.
Nio announced plans for a mass-market brand in 2021, saying its relationship to Nio would be similar to that of Volkswagen to Audi, and Toyota to Lexus.
A wave of Chinese EV makers is expanding in Europe as demand slows at home and they look to capitalize on a cost advantage versus Western rivals, which have been slower to adopt the new technology.
The European Union, however, is investigating Chinese EV imports to see if they breach competition rules.
Nio has been facing expanding losses as a price war started by Tesla weighed on its profitability. Nio has laid off 10% of its workers and is considering spin-offs of units such as its battery manufacturing business, and has formed partnerships to help fund ventures such as battery swapping as it looks to cut costs.
The partnerships -- struck in November with Geely and state-owned Changan Automobile -- will involve building a new battery pack and chassis architecture together with the carmakers to use as a blueprint for future partners, Qin said.
Nio has since signed a third partnership agreement, but it is too soon to disclose details, he added.