Written by Cláudio Afonso | LinkedIn | X
Onvo, the sub-brand launched last year by Nio, had set ambitious production targets, aiming to reach 5,000 units in October, double that to 10,000 in December, and ramp up to 16,000 in January before hitting 20,000 in March.
The family-oriented brand initially met its projections, producing and delivering 10,528 units of the L60 in December.
However, output dropped 43.8% in January to 5,912 vehicles, and deliveries fell further to 4,049 units in February, raising concerns among Wall Street analysts and shareholders over whether Onvo can increase production nearly fivefold in March to meet its goal.
Despite the slowdown, Nio’s founder and chief executive, William Li, reaffirmed the 20,000-unit target in an interview with Razão Automóvel published on Friday.
“Our production plan for Onvo at the Hefei factory was always to use only 60 kWh batteries from BYD until the end of October, and from November, we would already have a sufficient supply of 85 kWh batteries from CATL,” Li said.
Late last year, EV reported that Onvo was affected by supply constraints from BYD’s battery division, which limited deliveries of the L60. However, in December, Li told EV that the company had onboarded a third battery supplier to resolve the issue.
“Since the beginning of December, we have had three battery suppliers, and that issue has been resolved,” he said. “We delivered 10,000 Onvo units between October and November, 10,000 in December, and we will reach 20,000 in March.”
Onvo last week introduced limited-time incentives for customers who place a deposit before the end of March.
The offers include a five-year, 0% interest financing plan worth 18,755 yuan ($2,592), three years of free Navigate on Autopilot (NOA) valued at 11,520 yuan ($1,593), and 24 battery swap vouchers worth 1,620 yuan ($224). The company is also offering 3,000 yuan ($415) discounts on vehicle color and wheel customization.
The company confirmed recently that customers using its Battery-as-a-Service (BaaS) feature will have the option to upgrade from a 60kWh to an 85kWh battery on a daily, monthly, or annual basis.
Onvo is preparing to expand its lineup with two new SUVs this year, the first of which will be named the L90, brand chief Alan Ai said in a livestream last week.
The L90 will be Onvo’s flagship model, and will feature a three-row layout targeting larger families. The SUV is set to debut in the second quarter, with sales slated to begin in the third quarter.
In the same interview, Li said the company is focusing on “succeeding in the Chinese market” before expanding globally — “something that is unlikely to happen before 2028.”
“At the moment, our focus is on succeeding in the Chinese market, and only if we do that can we move to a global scale—something that is unlikely to happen before 2028,” Nio Group chief noted.
