China's Top EV Maker Starts Battery-Swap Service to Lure Users
(Bloomberg) -- Beijing Electric Vehicle Co., the Chinese electric-car maker preparing for a stock-market listing, is starting a battery-swap service to reduce customers' range anxiety and keep up with similar offerings from rivals.
The company will sell a version of its EV300 compact car for 79,800 yuan ($12,000) that allows users to change battery as often as they want for a monthly fee of 432 yuan, Zheng Gang, general manager of BJEV, as the unit of BAIC Group is known, said on the outskirts of Beijing on Thursday.
BJEV, China's biggest maker of pure electric cars, and rivals such as BYD Co. and NIO are bringing out new models and services at an accelerating pace to lure buyers in the world's biggest and most competitive market for alternative-energy vehicles. The country is set to maintain its position as the largest producer of electric vehicles, accounting for 59 percent of global sales by 2020 and 55 percent by 2025, JPMorgan Chase & Co. projects.
BJEV plans to set up 100 battery-swap stations in Beijing this year, and one change operation lasts 2 minutes and 46 seconds, according to the company. As part of the new program, BJEV gives users an option to sell their car back at half of the original price within three years.
Companies including NIO offer similar services. Owners of the NIO ES8 can change batteries at special service stations in three minutes or use the services of “Power Mobile” vehicles that travel to motorists to recharge their cars.
NIO plans to build more than 1,100 power-swap stations in China by 2020 and have more than 1,200 “Power Mobile” service vehicles. A battery-swap station can be assembled within a day. The carmaker will also offer other free services including road rescue.
BAIC Group is in the process of listing BJEV on the stock exchange, and the shares are set to start trading in about two months, BAIC Chairman Xu Heyi said in June.
To contact Bloomberg News staff for this story: Tian Ying in Beijing at ytian@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Anand Krishnamoorthy at anandk@bloomberg.net, Ville Heiskanen, Sam Nagarajan
©2018 Bloomberg L.P.
With assistance from Editorial Board
-
The Curious Case of Equitas Small Finance Bank And A CEO Who Quit For Stock
PN Vasudevan believes persistent investor concerns over a perceived conflict of interest had become a governance overhang on Equitas Small Finance Bank's stock, even as the lender improved profitability and asset quality.
-
Talking Points This Week: AI Cash Burn, A Tiger Comeback And An India That Still Finds Its Own Path
India is not immune to higher oil or tighter global liquidity, yet its earnings base is broader, its domestic policy levers are still available.
-
Foreign Investors Own Half Of HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank. An LTCG Cut Could Matter Most Here
Foreign portfolio investors have US$115 billion parked in HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank. If the government cuts long-term capital gains tax, Jefferies says returning foreign money could land here first.
-
'Never Seen This Level Of Negativity': Sandeep Tandon Says The Next Rally May Be Closer Than You Think
Veteran investor Sandeep Tandon says foreign selling is easing, large-caps are due a comeback and mid-caps are crowded, while he turns positive on gold, power and pharma this Diwali.
-
Indians Stay With Family, Not In Hotels | The Reason Why
India still lacks enough clean, reliable and affordable hotels for budget-conscious travellers.
-
The Economic Imperative: Analysing The Material Driving Force Behind India-Canada Strategic Reset
This economic complementarity is further reinforced by deep institutional investment ties and talent mobility, which form the bedrock of the bilateral framework.
-
Medicine Pricing: Where Must Profit Stop?
India must confront excessive margins, hidden incentives and regulatory gaps that threaten the integrity of medicine.
-
Why Amazon And Flipkart Are Struggling To Beat Meesho In India's Smaller Cities
With 274 million users and lowest-cost logistics, Meesho is defending its value commerce crown against giants like Amazon and Flipkart.
-
High US Salaries, No Green Card Certainty: The Financial Calculation Facing Indian H-1B Families
The suspension of PERM processing at eight technology employers does not cancel existing H-1B visas. What it does is force a question many Indian families have been avoiding: is the US salary worth tying your career and family plans to one employer?
-
Swiggy vs Eternal: Food Delivery's Two Rivals Are No Longer In The Same Race
Eternal is building a private AI assistant, dark.ai. Swiggy is still working out how to make Instamart pay, with an operating loss of Rs 895 crore in the July-September quarter while Blinkit stayed profitable.
