In recent years, China's new energy vehicle market penetration rate is increasing, recently some institutions predicted that the penetration rate of domestic new energy vehicles may exceed 35%, although from the data of 2021, the domestic new energy vehicle penetration rate is still at about 14%, but with the continuous influx of traditional car companies and new car-making players, the competition in the new energy vehicle market is bound to become more and more intense.
For consumers, the replenishment of electric vehicles is the top priority, although it has escaped the fluctuation brought about by the recent rise in oil prices, but the slow charging and replenishment anxiety still plague many users. In fact, from the perspective of energy replenishment efficiency, another power-up method of electric vehicles, "power exchange", has been ignored by many consumers, not because the power exchange is not important, but because many car companies themselves do not have relevant technology and research, so they can only be trapped in the charging path of this energy supplement, under the situation, consumer choice is also invisibly reduced. However, at present, as an important means of supplementation with charging, the market and consumers have paid more and more attention to its dynamic development, and Weilai, a new force in domestic brand car manufacturing, has also become the object of learning for many car companies.
In fact, as the first new energy electric vehicle brand to use the power exchange model for large-scale commercial use at the C-end, Weilai's success in power exchange is in the forefront at home and abroad. With a refueling efficiency comparable to refueling, NIO users can be on the road in 3 to 5 minutes with a full charge, which is a very efficient way for many users who pursue efficiency and quality. As of the end of March, Weilai has laid out 884 substations in The country, and in addition to the substation, WEILAI's charging piles and charging stations are also being carried out synchronously, at present, WEILAI has laid 727 supercharging stations in China, 4048, 681 destination charging stations, 3832, in addition to access to more than 480,000 third-party charging piles, fully meet the power needs of different users.
In May 2021, NIO officially released its Norwegian strategy, and in January this year, NIO launched the first substation in the European market in Norway. For the European media, the substation can be described as a new product, although many foreign companies, even Tesla have tried, but the final successful commercialization and promotion is indeed a Chinese car company Weilai.
In March, a British media outlet experienced the NIO Norway Substation and said that the Chinese luxury electric vehicle brand NIO was launching one of the most breakthrough energy replenishment services since Tesla began building its charging network: "power replacement". For many consumers who are accustomed to refueling vehicles in a few minutes at a gas station, it is still difficult to accept trams, and the idea behind the "black technology" of power exchange technology is almost impossible. However, as an electric vehicle company, WEILAI is indeed promoting the operation and development of the power exchange mode, subverting consumer cognition, and effectively improving the experience of electric vehicle replacement.
According to Espen Byrjall, power and operation manager of NIO Norway Branch, unlike the substation in China, NIO has melted and cleaned the battery temperature of the bottom ice of the electric vehicle during the power exchange to ensure battery safety in response to the cold weather conditions in Norway. It is reported that the NIO ES8 sold by NIO in Norway is equipped with a 100 kWh battery pack, NIO will bring 75 kWh of battery packs in 2022, and it is expected to bring 150 kWh of battery packs in 2023.