NIO launches battery swapping station in Norway to ease range anxiety

NIO launches battery swapping station in Norway to ease range anxiety

Chinese multinational automobile manufacturer NIO Incorporated recently announced the launch of its first battery swapping station in Norway, in a move that will support the market launch of compatible EVs like the ES8.

The first NIO battery swapping station in Norway is located close to the E-18 at Kjellstad in Lier, just a few kilometers north of the City of Drammen. Preparations to open the site were being made since November last year.

The plans to launch the second-generation battery swapping station, called Power Swap Station 2.0, was first announced by the Chinese manufacturer in April 2021. It has fourteen (14) battery slots and thirteen (13) battery packs. The first-generation battery swapping station would offer 5 battery packs and an empty slot for a discharged (old/previous generation) battery.

The new battery swapping station is part of the company’s efforts to support the market launch of its models, such as NIO ES8, in Norway’s fast-expanding EV market. Other EVs compatible with the battery swapping system will also benefit from the new facility.

In Norway, the Chinese manufacturer has plans to launch at least 20 such facilities by the end of 2022. In China, it is already operating more than 700 sites for swapping batteries, and the aim is to install as many as 4,000 more (including 1,000 outside China) by the end of mid of this decade (2025). The battery swapping facilities will allow NIO to offer the EVs in the Battery as a Service (BaaS) sales model. It means that customers will be able to purchase a car without a battery and they will pay a monthly subscription to use a battery from a battery swapping network. As per the manufacturer, 92 per cent of early customers in Norway opted for BaaS instead of the full purchase.

As the world is accelerating its pace of shift from internal combustion engines to EVs, manufacturers want to leave no stone unturned to attract potential buyers. It is worth-mentioning here that range anxiety among EV owners is still a big hurdle on the way to mass adoption of EVs. Opening of new battery swapping stations will definitely help in easing range anxiety.

Shanghai, China-headquartered NIO is now preparing to open a similar battery swapping station in Germany (the largest EV market in Europe) as well, and it should be up and running before the end of this year.

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