Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency

China-based NIO’s investment in Biatorbágy, located near Budapest, reached a key milestone just a few weeks after the official announcement of the deal: manufacturing of its power swap stations has started in its 10,000 sq m production hall.

The concept behind the technology is that dead battery packs are automatically replaced in a container-sized unit. This operation takes only a few minutes, as opposed to the traditional technology of electric charging points.

Being involved in manufacturing intelligent e-cars, NIO is determined to rev up sales of its premium category vehicles and build out manufacturing capacities of products closely related to such vehicles.

NIO plans to install up to 4,000 power swap stations worldwide by 2025, out of which 1,000 should be outside China, with the aim to provide a sustainable and fast charging solution on a mass scale. The new plant in Hungary plays a major role in achieving this target as it is expected to produce 20 power swap stations per month. The completed units will be exported to every European market where NIO’s electric vehicles are sold.

The investment strengthens Hungary’s role as an EV powerhouse as between 2016 and H1 2022 a number of mainly Asian investors have settled in over 20 places all over the country to pursue battery manufacturing-related activities. This heavy investor engagement propelled Hungary to the third largest battery manufacturer in the world by 2021.