Chinese automaker Nio and BYD are considering a battery supply collaboration. Nio is turning to BYD batteries for its new affordable electric vehicle (EV) brand.
According to Reuters‘ sources, Nio aims to compete directly with Tesla with its new EV brand, which will be in a lower price range. The new EV brand will be called Onvo in English and Ledao in Chinese. The brand’s first car launch, the Onvo L60, will compete with the Tesla Model Y.
Nio initially planned to produce its own batteries but halted this plan in December 2023. Instead, Nio has focused on cutting costs and reversing losses.
On the other hand, BYD’s collaboration with Nio will help expand its revenue. BYD has been exploring ways to go beyond EV production and enter the battery supply chain, which might be a good move in China, where the cost of EVs is becoming more competitive.
Nio already has a partnership agreement with CATL, one of the world’s leading battery suppliers.
“One of the most important problems that has fundamentally not been solved nor attracted widespread attention is battery life. This is not only a problem that Nio needs to solve, but one that the whole industry must work together to solve,” said William Li, Nio’s Founder and CEO.
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