By Michael Elkins
Chinese electric automaker, Nio Inc (NYSE:NIO) told CNBC in an interview that the company will not cut prices.
“For us, we will certainly not join the price war,” CEO William Li said, according to a translation of the interview, claiming Nio’s products and services are worth the price.
Li said his company will focus on improving its customer services — such as adding battery swapping and charging stations. The swapping technology changes out batteries so that drivers don’t have to wait for charging.
Nio announced last week that starting June 1, new customers putting down deposits for some of its models will be able to use the company’s battery swapping service for free four times a month. That’s down from as many as six free swaps a month previously.
The company also said last week they would start charging drivers 380 yuan ($56) a month to use its assisted driving system, called Navigate on Pilot (NOP) Plus. The software has been free to test.
Offering technology to assist drivers with parking, highway lane changes, and other tasks has increasingly become a selling point for electric car companies in China.
Nio’s revenue comes primarily from China, where government policies have helped accelerate growth in electric car sales. New energy vehicles saw penetration of passenger car sales reach 34% in March. Faster than Nio anticipated, Li said.
“There are many new products coming to market, which of course means fiercer competition for us,” he said. “But for users, they have a more abundant selection.”
Over the last two years, Nio began delivering vehicles to European countries such as Norway and Germany. However, tensions between China and the U.S. have escalated, while relations between Europe and Beijing have not been smooth either.
Sustainable global development requires good products for users around the world, something that cannot be done by relying on a single country, Li said.
“Despite the big challenges we face from geopolitics, we still want to stick to serving our customers, pay attention to the pace of investment and manage operational risks well,” he said.
When asked about the U.S. market, Li said the company was proceeding with its plans. “But we know challenges will certainly be greater and greater,” he said.
Shares of NIO are down 0.46% in premarket trading on Tuesday.