On March 25, at the 2021 Q4 financial report meeting of WEIO, Li Bin said that the business work of NIO's new brand for the mass market is progressing smoothly, the core team is completed, the strategic direction and development plan are clarified, and the first batch of products has entered the key research and development stage. For the products currently on sale, there is no idea of price increases at present.
In 2022, NIO will continue to expand its sales and service network in China, and plans to add no less than 100 new sales outlets throughout the year, adding more than 50 NIO service centers and authorized service centers.
The construction and equipment installation of the second production base located in Hefei Xinqiao Intelligent Automobile Industrial Park have been basically completed, and the commissioning work is progressing smoothly. The second production base is planned to have a production capacity of 60JPH, and is scheduled to start production in the third quarter of this year, with the first model produced being the ET5. And on March 16, the first ET5 prototype car was rolled off the production center.
In the next few years, WEILAI will continue to increase investment in research and development of key technologies, especially in key areas related to full-stack autonomous driving technology and power batteries. We firmly believe that investment in research and development of core technologies can not only enhance the sustainable competitiveness of our technologies and products, but also improve the level of gross profit margin and profitability in the long run.
In addition, NIO will also release the ES7, the first SUV model based on NIO's second-generation technology platform NT2, in the near future. The new product is positioned in the medium and large high-end five-seat SUV market, and is scheduled to start delivery in the third quarter of this year.