NIO and CATL have agreed to deepen their strategic collaboration by extending their battery supply and R&D partnership for an additional five years, through 2030. Under the new terms, CATL will deliver a cumulative 60 GWh of long-life lithium-ion cells—comprising both NCMA and LFP chemistries—while co-investing in a dedicated cell development unit at NIO’s Hefei facility. The two companies will also share intellectual property on next-generation cell formats, with joint testing of semi-solid-state prototypes slated to begin in Q3 2026.

As part of the agreement, NIO plans to increase its battery swap station network from 1,200 locations at the end of 2024 to 5,000 stations across more than 200 Chinese cities by the close of 2026. This expansion targets a four-fold rise in annual swap service transactions, from 750,000 swaps in 2024 to over 3 million swaps in 2026, and aims to boost recurring revenue from swap subscriptions by over 45% year-over-year.

With intense pricing pressure from domestic rivals forcing discounts of 8%–12% on average transaction values, NIO sees the CATL deal as critical to lowering cell costs by an estimated 15% by 2027. This is projected to improve NIO’s overall vehicle gross margin by roughly three percentage points, partially offsetting the 2.5 point margin erosion experienced in the second half of 2024 due to aggressive market pricing.

NIO’s roadmap includes a co-funded R&D spend of 2 billion CNY over the next three years to commercialize 700-kilometer NEDC range cells and integrate fast-charging protocols compatible with CATL’s 800V platform. For investors, the partnership reduces supply chain risk, solidifies NIO’s cost-competitive position in China’s largest EV market, and underpins targets to double annual vehicle deliveries to over 330,000 units by 2026.