This is the third agreement has signed with a highway service area operator in the past month.

(Image credit: Nio)

To advance its battery swap network along highways, Nio has signed an agreement with another highway service area operator, the third such deal in the past month.

Nio today announced the signing of a strategic partnership agreement with Hebei Expressway Group to jointly build a battery swap network covering local highways in Hebei province in northern China.

Hebei Expressway Group will provide the site, while Nio will invest in the construction of battery swap stations and power distribution facilities, according to a statement posted by Nio on its app.

The two parties are deepening cooperation on major service areas in the Hebei section of several expressways, including the G1 Beijing-Harbin Expressway, G3 Beijing-Taipei Expressway, G4 Beijing-Hong Kong-Macao Expressway, G20 Qingdao-Yinchuan Expressway, and G45 Daqing-Guangzhou Expressway.

The two will build Nio battery swap stations to serve the growing demand for new energy vehicle (NEV) travel and improve energy replenishment facilities along the highways, Nio said, without disclosing specific targets.

According to public information, Hebei Expressway Group manages 104 pairs of service areas.

Notably, Nio has already built a battery swap network covering the Hebei section of four expressways: the G1 Beijing-Harbin Expressway, the G2 Beijing-Shanghai Expressway, the G4 Beijing-Hong Kong-Macao Expressway and the G5 Beijing-Kunming Expressway.

With the company's strategic partnership with Hebei Expressway Group, the battery swap stations along the expressways in Hebei will become even denser, Nio said.

This is the third agreement that Nio has signed with a highway service area operator in about a month's time.

On November 23, Nio signed a strategic cooperation agreement in Guangzhou with Guangdong Tongyi Expressway Service Co Ltd, which operates 352 service areas.

The two sides will cooperate around energy replenishment layout and high-speed service area construction, which will enable resource sharing and establish a deep strategic partnership for sustainable development, Nio's previous announcement said.

On December 15, Nio and signed an agreement with Anhui Yida Service Area Management Co Ltd to jointly build 13 battery swap stations in highway service areas in Anhui.

In late September, Nio announced that it would complete its battery swap network covering eight major highways and four densely populated metropolitan areas by the Chinese New Year holiday in 2022, which falls on January 31.

The company's goal of increasing the number of battery swap stations covering highways to 169 by the Chinese New Year has already been achieved.

As of December 28, Nio has 753 battery swap stations in China, 202 of which are located along highways.