China’s NIO reveals Australian launch plan
Would-be Tesla rival prepares to sell its electric cars Down Under by 2025Chinese battery-electric vehicle brand NIO appears to be joining the rush to launch in Australia.
Company founder and CEO William Li revealed the international expansion plan at the annual NIO Day in held in Suzhou, near Shanghai, last weekend.
As we’ve reported, Li also unveiled the smaller Tesla Model 3-rivalling 2022 NIO ET5 hatchback at the event, with deliveries scheduled to start in September next year.
Currently, the Chinese car-maker exports the NIO ES8 SUV to Norway. The new NIO ET7 large sedan goes on sale in China and internationally in 2022.
Li said the launch of the ES8 in Norway had given the brand confidence to expand into other global markets.
“In 2022, NIO’s products and complete service system will be officially brought to Germany, The Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark,” Li announced.
“We plan by 2025 to offer service to users in over 25 countries and regions across the globe.”
While Li didn’t go further in listing export targets, a giant illuminated map behind him on-stage may have given the game away.
Australia and New Zealand were lit up along with much of Europe, China and Japan and the US as Li spoke.
The rest of the globe remained in darkness.
NIO joins a number of Chinese brands headed to Australia. GWM’s EV brand ORA and the 4x4 specialist Tank brand will be here in 2022 and Geely’s premium brand Lynk & Co has stated it will launch by 2025.
Founded in late 2014 as NextEV with backing from tech giants Tencent and Baidu among others, Li changed its name to NIO in 2015 and soon established research and design subsidiaries in Germany and the US.
It floated on the US stock market in 2018 and exported its first cars outside China to Norway this year.
Li recently revealed NIO was developing a mainstream brand to sit below it and take on Volkswagen and Toyota.
NIO currently offers the EP9 electrified supercar and three SUVs in its range.
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