Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
Electric vehicle maker Nio reported higher revenue and gross margin for the third quarter of the year, enabling the company to achieve positive operating cash flow and free cash flow for the first time in its history.
At the earnings conference call held last week, the company’s founder and CEO William Li revealed the EV maker aims to reach full-year profitability in 2026 as Wall Street analysts still show concerns on major investments Nio has ahead.
As it scales up sales and its charging network for its budget sub-brand Onvo, the group’s second brand — Firefly — is set to launch on December 21, enabling the company to expand its presence in the mass-market segment.
Answering to questions from analysts, Li said “the entire company will use 2026 as the timing where we will achieve the full-year breakeven” adding that Nio “will be also planning our strategies and activities according to that target.”
The company expects to deliver between 72,000 and 75,000 EVs in the last quarter of the year while showing confidence in doubling sales in 2025.
At an event held in China, Nio’s co-founder and president, Lihong Qin, local media Sina Finance reported on Wednesday the comments from the executive on the path to profitability.
“In the long-term and significant journey of smart electric vehicles, pursuing profitability too early is unreasonable. This doesn’t mean that Nio’s losses are justified,” he stated at the event.
Lihong Qin reaffirmed that it took Tesla 14 to 15 years to achieve profitability saying, “Nio has only been around for 10 years” and the management expects the EV maker “to become profitable within 11 to 12 years [since the company’s establishment in 2014].”
“We’ve made this commitment and those who believe in us—particularly investors—may see returns if they are right. Conversely, those who doubt us could face potential losses. We’re simply being honest about our outlook,” Nio’s co-founder added.
As the company celebrates its 10th anniversary, the company’s CEO William Li siad last week he sees the upcoming two years as crucial for its success.
On Sunday, the company officially launched in Israel earlier this month through a partnership with Delek Motors, as exclusively reported by EV on November 4. Since mid October, the company has held the launch event in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and announced the expansion to Azerbaijan.
Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
