Geely and Nio ink battery swap cooperation

China’s Geely and Nio have signed a strategic partnership agreement on battery swapping, with both parties agreeing to cooperation on battery standards, battery swapping technology, battery swapping network expansion, swappable model development, and battery asset management.

Battery swapping “is being embraced by more EV users”, according to the firms, although it remains to be seen how enthusiastically it will be embraced outside China. Nio has ambitious battery swap expansion plans, including in Europe.

Geely and Nio will adopt what the firms are calling a "co-investment, co-construction, shared, co-operative" model”, which in practice means developing two battery swapping standards for private cars and commercial vehicles, accelerating the development and promotion of battery swapping technology, and expanding the operational scale of battery swapping.

Both signatories commit will establish to building a unified battery swap operation, as well as developing battery swappable vehicles compatible with each other’s battery swap systems.

“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,” says Nio CEO William Li. “This strategic partnership will further popularize battery swapping, bring quality and convenient battery swapping experience to more users.”

And Nio’s Li hints at similar agreements with other OEMs, talking about “collaborating with partners to launch the construction of a shared battery swapping network".

“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,” agrees Eric Li, chairman of Geely. This initial collaboration will “accelerate the adoption of unified standards [and] expand the ecosystem for battery swapping and charging,” he continues.