What’s new: Chinese electric vehicle (EV) upstart Nio Inc. will stick to its commitment to only produce pure-electric models, its founder and CEO said, even as other carmakers plow cash into developing hybrid cars.
Speaking at the Beijing Auto Show on Thursday, Li Bin predicted the transition of the country’s passenger car market would come in two phases. In the first, drivers will replace their conventional cars with new-energy vehicles (NEVs), and in the second there will be a complete shift to pure-electric models.
The background: NEVs comprise pure EVs, plug-in hybrids and fuel cell vehicles, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM).
In 2023, China’s NEV sales rose 37.9% year-on-year to around 9.5 million units. That was made up of about 6.69 million pure EVs, a 24.6% increase year-on-year; 2.8 million plug-in hybrids, up 84.7%; and 6,000 fuel cell cars, up 72%, according to data from CAAM.
Several of China’s traditional carmakers are pouring resources into hybrid development, launching and announcing new models as so-called “range anxiety” lingers among car buyers.
Plug-in hybrids use batteries to power an electric motor and fossil fuels to power an internal combustion engine. While on the road, they can use fuel, battery power or a mix of the two to run. Another variant, extended-range hybrids, use an internal-combustion engine to provide additional power for the electric motor while driving.
Contact reporters Kelsey Cheng (kelseycheng@caixin.com) and Ding Yi (yiding@caixin.com) and editor Joshua Dummer (joshuadummer@caixin.com)
