Chinese carmakers Nio and Geely have signed a deal to partner on EV battery-swapping technology.

The partnership will see the two firms working together to widen the number of cars and commercial vehicles that can offer the technology in the future. The deal comes as Nio celebrates opening 30 Power Swap Stations (PPS) in Europe, with the latest two being in Malmö and Arlandastad, Sweden. 

The two new PPSs can perform up to 408 swaps a day and store up to 21 batteries, said Nio. The carmaker now has over 2,200 PPSs around the world.

William LI, chief executive of Nio, said: “Nio and Geely share a profound understanding of battery swapping and have been dedicated to the investment in the battery swapping technology and network for private cars and commercial vehicles with rich experience in swapping service and operations.

“This strategic partnership will further popularise battery swapping, bring quality and convenient battery swapping experience to more users and contribute to the steady development of the smart EV industry.”

Nio already sells cars in Norway, Germany, Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden, and plans to launch in the UK in late 2024. The firm's UK boss and Head of European Sales told Electrifying in October it will only launch in Britain once it has created a network of sales and service 'hubs' and battery-swap stations.

Nio's PPSs can swap a car's depleted battery in less than five minutes, and the firm has completed nearly 33 million swaps around the world since the firm was created in 2014.

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