Nio’s new car sales in Norway fell sharply in April, both year-on-year and month-on-month, to just 29 units, according to data from the registration platform EU-EVs.
The Chinese electric vehicle maker saw a 55% decline from the 64 units sold in the same month last year, and a 34% drop from March’s tally of 44. Nio currently offers six models in Norway: two sedans (ET5 and ET7), one station wagon (ET5 Touring), and three SUVs (EL6, EL7, and EL8).
Over the first four months of the year, Nio sold 133 EVs in the country.
This Summer, the company will begin test drives of the compact EV Firefly, which shares the name with Nio’s new sub-brand. The brand made its European debut at Norway’s Autopia Auto Show last month. Test drives in Norway are scheduled to begin “this summer”, with first deliveries expected later in the year. Prices will start at NOK 279,900 ($26,970).
To increase demand and clear inventory, the company is running a limited-time promotion offering private buyers two years of free battery rental for in-stock ET5 sedans, valid through June 30, with vehicle delivery required by August 31. The offer excludes the ET5 Touring, EL6, and EL8.
Buyers opting for Nio’s Battery-as-a-Service (BaaS) subscription can save up to 47,976 Norwegian kroner ($4,600) on the 100 kWh battery or 33,576 kroner ($3,200) on the 75 kWh version.
Nio’s April registrations represented just 0.26% of the overall passenger car market, as total new registrations edged up to 11,286 units. Norway, the global leader in EV adoption, hit a new milestone in April, with 97% of new cars registered being fully electric.
Norway’s official registration rankings only list the 20 best-selling brands each month. The lowest-ranked in April was BMW’s MINI, with 108 units sold, meaning Nio and other brands with lower volumes were absent from the published table by Norway’s Road Traffic Information Council (OFV).
Among Chinese rivals, Zeekr registered 97 vehicles, XPeng 333, and BYD 399—combining fully electric and plug-in hybrid models. Tesla, the market leader, delivered 976 EVs in April, up nearly 12% year-on-year, capturing an 8.6% share and bringing its year-to-date total to 4,793.
Tesla’s Model Y was Norway’s top-selling car for the second consecutive month, with 869 units sold in April and 3,656 year-to-date.
In Norway, its first market outside China, the company sold nearly 900 vehicles in 2024 and is targeting 69% growth for this year, with the country’s chief saying earlier this year that “1,500 cars [sold] with a reasonable margin, that’s OK. Then I’m pretty happy.”
An Ho, who took over as head of Nio’s Nordic operations from Marius Hayler in late 2023, said in an interview with local media outlet Bilbransje24 that Nio is targeting 1,500 units in 2024—a 69% increase from last year.
“We have an exciting model portfolio. At the same time, I do not think it is realistic for us to double the sales targets in 2025 compared to 2024. If we end up with 1,500 cars with a reasonable margin, that’s OK. Then I’m pretty happy.”
Nio currently operates 20 battery swap stations in Norway. The last station opened in November 2024, and further expansion has since stopped in line with a broader slowdown in infrastructure investment across the continent.
In the same interview, Ho said that “a few more” openings are planned later this year.
Battery swap stations allow drivers to exchange a depleted battery for a fully charged one in minutes—a key differentiator in Nio’s strategy.
