NIO is the latest electric carmaker to declare price changes
China's premium EV maker NIO (NIO:NYSE; 9866:HK) announced to elevate prices for three of its model and battery rental service BaaS (Battery as a Service) on April 10 in response to rising raw materials.
Model ES8, ES6 and EC6 will increase by CNY 10,000 (USD 1,570), respectively with effect from May 10. While starting prices for NIO's two latest models, ET7 and ET5 sedan, will remain unchanged.
For its battery as a service (BaaS) business, the battery rental fee for the long-range model will be raised to CNY 1,680 per month from CNY 1,480 per month.
The price adjustment will not affect users who have paid deposits before May 9, 2022 (including the day), said NIO.
At the FY 2021 conference call, NIO indicated that it had no plans to increase vehicle prices in the short term, but it would stay flexible to adjusting prices based on the evolving market environment.
NIO is expected to release the upgraded model ES8, ES6 and EC6 in late May. The 2022 versions will feature upgrades on smart hardware, including Qualcomm SA8155 chip, 360-view camera and 5G module, which will naturally be priced higher. NIO will also offer hardware upgrades to the cockpit at a reduced price for existing customers.
Several of NIO's rivals have raised their prices previously under pressure from soaring raw materials prices and chip supply shortage. They include Tesla (TSLA:NASDAQ), XPeng Motors (XPEV:NYSE; 9868:HK), BYD (002694: SZSE) and Li Auto (LI:NASDAQ; 2015:HK).