According to an announcement on the company’s mobile app, NIO will launch its 3rd-generation battery swap station on NIO Day 2022 (December 24). The new NIO battery swap station is expected to have a 22-battery-pack capacity and should support 800V architecture.
Apart from its larger capacity, the 3rd-gen swap station will have a fast charging speed and better detection and cooling technologies. Local Chinese media speculate that the first NIO 3rd-gen swap station will be situated in Nanxiang, Jiading District, Shanghai.
At the annual NIO Power Day in July, NIO teased the 3rd-gen swap station along with its 500 kW charging piles.
Speaking at the occasion, NIO president and co-founder William Li revealed that the firm was developing liquid-cooled ultra-fast charging piles with up to 500 kW and maximum currents of 650 A. He further stated that the charging piles would be installed across Europe and China before the end of the year.
Mr. Li also pointed out that NIO was developing its third-generation battery swap station, which would be more flexible and have a higher output than previous versions. He stated that the third-generation battery swap station would be ready for testing between the end of 2022 and the start of 2023. This aligns with NIO’s goal of establishing over 4,000 battery swap stations worldwide by 2025.
NIO currently has 1,277 battery swap stations, 2,226 charging stations, and 13,030 charging piles as of press time. The first-generation swap stations are capable of storing 5 batteries and can complete 120 battery swaps daily, while the second-generation swap stations can store 13 batteries and complete up to 312 battery swaps daily.
The 3rd-gen swap station patents from NIO show that it will have a larger capacity than the previous iteration and will be compatible with different sizes of battery packs. As NIO continues to push its power plan, it is expected that the company will unveil a 3rd-gen power station sometime in the near future.
NIO recently stated that its battery swap technology is open to other automakers. The 3rd-gen battery swap station will be launched alongside two new NIO models on NIO Day 2022.
Sources: Yiche, Weibo
