Weekly newsletter of cnEVpost - Issue #2

NIO to build 'world-class' smart EV industrial park in Hefei - cnEVpost NIO announced on Thursday that it entered into an agreement with the municipal government of Hefei, Anhui province, where NIO China's headquarters is located, to jointly build a “world-class” smart electric vehicle industrial campus.

NIO to acquire 3.305% of NIO China's stake for RMB 5.5 billion - cnEVpost Chinese electric vehicle maker NIO said today it entered into an agreement to purchase 3.305% of NIO China's stake for RMB 5.5 billion from two of the minority strategic investors that invested in NIO China in April 2020.

NIO partners with a furniture retail giant to build 60 charging and battery swap stations - cnEVpost Under the agreement, NIO will receive support from Red Star for the construction and operation of the stations in 2021.

NIO defies Tesla Model Y price cuts in China and delivers record 7,225 units in Jan - cnEVpost The deliveries consisted of 1,660 ES8s, a 6-seater and 7-seater flagship premium smart electric SUV, 2,720 ES6s, a 5-seater high-performance premium smart electric SUV, and 2,845 EC6s, a 5-seater premium electric coupe SUV.

NIO's William Li reflects on his woes at the end of 2019 - cnEVpost William Li, founder, chairman, and CEO of Chinese electric carmaker NIO, recalled his woes at the end of 2019 in a recent interview with CCTV, saying it made sense for investors to choose not to bail out NIO at that time.

LinkedIn job posting suggests NIO accelerating its entry into US market - cnEVpost A recent LinkedIn job posting by Chinese electric vehicle maker NIO suggests that it may be accelerating its plans to enter the US market.

XPeng sends second batch of 209 G3 SUVs to Norway - cnEVpost Chinese EV maker XPeng Motors said on February 4 that the second shipment of 209 XPeng G3 SUVs has recently departed Guangzhou for Europe, following the export and delivery of the first 100 G3s to Norway in 2020.

XPeng may launch lower-priced P7 with lithium iron phosphate batteries - cnEVpost Chinese automaker XPeng Motors may launch a lower-priced P7 with CATL's lithium iron phosphate batteries, a regulatory filing shows.

Credit Suisse maintains Outperform rating on XPeng with $70 price target - cnEVpost XPeng's January shipments reached a record 6,015 units, a 470% year-on-year jump, which Credit Suisse said reflects XPeng's improved shipment capacity, newly introduced smart systems, ability to expand its brand and marketing efforts.

XPeng delivers 6,015 units in Jan, up 470% year-on-year - cnEVpost This is the first time that XPeng has delivered more than 6,000 units per month, setting a new record for the third consecutive month and growing at more than 100% year-on-year for the seventh consecutive month.

XPeng's chairman says he once made enough money on stocks including Tesla to buy two or three planes - cnEVpost "By the end of 2019 to the beginning of 2020, I made enough money to buy two or three planes, but then I've been putting it into my startup," he said at the GeekPark Innovation Conference 2021.

Li Auto comes into spotlight with another accident - cnEVpost Li Auto is back in the spotlight again after a video showing a moving Li ONE suddenly losing control went viral among Chinese Internet users.

Meituan's founder said to have once borrowed $285 million from Goldman Sachs to invest in Li Auto - cnEVpost Wang Xing, the founder, and CEO of China's online service super-app Meituan, at one time, pledged his shares in Meituan to Goldman Sachs and borrowed $285 million to invest in Chinese EV maker Li Auto, according to a veteran media personality.

Deutsche Bank initiates coverage on Li Auto with Hold rating and $35 price target - cnEVpost Deutsche Bank analysts led by Edison Yu initiated coverage on Li Auto with a Hold rating and a price target of $35, representing an 8.5 percent upside potential from Friday's close.

Li Auto delivered 5,379 vehicles in January, up 355.8% year-on-year - cnEVpost Li Auto in January delivered 5,379 units of the Li ONE, its only model, up 355.8 percent year-on-year but was down 12% from December's 6,126 units.

Tesla recalls 36,126 imported Model S and Model X vehicles in China - cnEVpost The recall includes 20,428 units of some imported Model S vehicles with production dates between September 18, 2013 and February 20, 2018, and 15,698 units of some imported Model X vehicles with production dates between March 12, 2016 and February 16, 2018.

Tesla launches Enhanced Autopilot option in China for half the price of FSD - cnEVpost Tesla opened the Enhanced Autopilot (EAP) option in China on February 5 at a price of RMB 32,000 ($4,943), half the price of Full Self-Driving (FSD) in China.

Tesla's Shanghai Supercharger plant goes into production, China-made V3 Supercharger rolls off line - cnEVpost It has an initial planned annual capacity of 10,000 Superchargers and is primarily a V3 charging pile, which is Tesla's most advanced charging pile to date.

Tesla blames China's power grid for vehicle failure and then apologizes - cnEVpost Tesla blamed State Grid of China for a vehicle charging malfunction, a common practice that brings the US electric car company back into the spotlight by first skimming off the blame in the face of problems.

BYD Han sells 12,103 units in January, above 10,000 for 3 consecutive months - cnEVpost Sales of the model increased 0.12 percent in January compared to December, and 52,659 units have been sold since its launch in July 2020.

BYD sells 20,178 new energy vehicles in January, down 30% from December - cnEVpost Chinese automaker BYD sold 20,178 new energy vehicles in January, up 182.88 percent year-on-year, but down 30 percent from 28,841 vehicles in December.

BYD reportedly to build electric super coupe - cnEVpost Chinese automaker BYD is said to be building an electric super coupe, internally codenamed R2, with very high power performance and a sports car look, according to Autohome.

Chinese power battery maker Svolt Energy to mass produce first cobalt-free batteries - cnEVpost Svolt Energy, a battery maker owned by Chinese automaker Great Wall Motors, announced that the material of cobalt-free cathode, the core material required for cobalt-free batteries, began to be produced in volume at its Changzhou materials plant.

FF expects to sell more than 400,000 units in next five years, says FF 91 orders exceed 14,000 - cnEVpost Faraday Future (FF) expects to sell more than 400,000 units over the next five years and has received more than 14,000 orders for its first flagship model, FF 91, the company said today.

CATL to invest another $4.5 billion in battery capacity expansion - cnEVpost CATL, China's largest automotive lithium-ion battery maker, is going to invest RMB 29 billion ($4.5 billion) in three battery projects in Yibin, Zhaoqing, and Xiapu, considering the strong market demand for lithium batteries.