NIO Company Information
NIO is a successful manufacturer and designer of electric cars based in Shanghai, China. William Lee founded the Company in 2014 to enter and compete in the international electric vehicle (EV) market. The business has hired over two thousand specialists and six thousand employees in thirteen countries by the present time. The investors of NIO include Tencent, Baidu, GIC, TPG, Sequoia Capital, and Hill House Capital. The Company participates in FIA Formula E Championship to test the new technology and strategies before implementing them in the mass market. NIO’s headquarters are in Shanghai, but operational offices are also located in the USA, Germany, England, and Hong Kong (Kumar, 2018). This company is one of the strongest competitive figures in the EV business today and is expected to grow in the coming years.
Battery Rental Service
NIO practices a Battery as a Service (Baas) business strategy, which requires drivers to pay rent to use the batteries. The cost is manageable for developed countries – $150 per month. It allows the company to use the resources more efficiently. Replacing the batteries is a time-saving approach that enables customers to receive a fully charged vehicle in several minutes (Jin & He, 2019). Currently, NIO manages one hundred forty-three stations in sixty-four cities of China. The Company has replaced over eight hundred thousand EV batteries to date (Deloitte, 2020). NIO has proved that treating the batteries as mobile parts is efficient.
Competitors
Tesla stays NIO’s primary competitor and the world leader with its entrance into the Chinese market and ambitious plans for the future. Chinese state-owned BAIC is the second largest car producer in the world (Kumar 2018). BYD is in third place at the moment, mass-producing vehicles with hybrid engines and minicars (Deloitte, 2020). Another Chinese company Xpeng develops rapidly as well, resembling American Tesla and targeting the domestic market. China became home to over four hundred new electric vehicle brands quickly (Jin & He, 2019). The country is now open to both Western and domestic manufactures.
NIO Future Plans
NIO plans to build over one thousand and one hundred charging stations in China by the end of 2020. It aims to equip one thousand and two hundred Power Mobile Service vehicles by the same time (Deloitte, 2020). China currently presents the largest electric vehicle market in the world. The country creates incentives and supportive business conditions for automakers. NIO is successfully building and implementing the infrastructure for its business. The company has good chances of overcoming its competitors in the market in the future years.
References
Deloitte. (2020). New market. New entrants. New challenges. Battery electric vehicles. Web.
Jin, L., & He, H. (2019). Comparison of the electric car market in China and the United States. International Council on Clean Transportation Working Paper. Web.
Kumar, K. (2018). Chinese electric car market vs Tesla. Curiosity Publishers.