Nio’s Firefly electric vehicle will not adopt CATL’s battery swap network, instead relying on Nio’s fifth-generation swap stations, CEO William Li said.
Li made the comments at a Nio owner event in Changzhou, Jiangsu province, with videos shared by automotive bloggers including @电动兄弟 and @德卤爱开车.
He explained that CATL’s air-cooled battery packs are primarily aimed at the ride-hailing market, while Firefly uses liquid-cooled packs that provide better safety and more consistent performance across low and high temperatures.
This approach contrasts with prior announcements detailing Nio’s collaboration with CATL. In March, the two companies signed an agreement to create the world’s largest battery swap network, with CATL’s Choco-Swap standards intended for future Firefly models.
CATL currently operates 800 battery swap stations in China, aiming to reach 1,000 locations by the end of 2025. Li’s remarks appear to apply to the current Firefly EV model rather than future Nio-CATL joint developments.