Battery leasing service offered by NIO
The Chinese electric vehicle maker launched a battery leasing service that allow drivers to buy an EV without owning the battery pack.
The service is called “battery as a service” (BaaS) and allows drivers to pay a monthly rental fee for use of the batteries. Batteries are one of the most expensive EV components. By this service, NIO can lower the starting price of its cars by around 25 per cent. Without battery, the cheapest Nio car is around USD 39,553.
“We believe with BaaS, more customers of gasoline cars will consider electric vehicles,” NIO’s chief executive William Li told reporters. He also said NIO hoped to enter some international markets from the second half of next year starting with some European countries. He added the firm aimed to enter more markets from 2022.
The batteries for NIO’s leasing service will be supplied by a company established by Chinese battery makers including leader Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd. NIO operates 143 battery-swapping stations around China, where drivers can swap spent battery packs for fully charged replacements.
According to a press release by NIO, ”enabled by vehicle-battery separation, battery subscription and the chargeable, swappable and upgradable batteries, NIO BaaS is a breakthrough innovation in both technology and business model”.
Moreover, the Chinese car maker say that the launch of BaaS makes the purchase decision much easier and represents a better balance between the purchasing cost and the using cost. With BaaS, both costs are lower than those of ICE cars in the same segment. At the same time, BaaS also represents a systematic solution to the long-existing challenges for EV penetration, including battery degradation, battery upgradability, and lower resale value.
