Since mid-October, Nio's production has started to face challenges due to Covid curbs, according to local media.
(Image credit: CnEVPost)
Nio's two plants in Hefei, Anhui province, recently halted production amid local Covid prevention and control requirements, and deliveries of its models are now generally delayed, local media outlet 36kr reported today.
Nio's production has been facing challenges since mid-October, the report said, citing sources familiar with the matter.
In line with the local Covid prevention and control measures, the JAC-Nio F1 plant originally planned to temporarily shut down production for 3-5 days and use parts inventory to produce in a closed environment, but then the lockdown time was extended, resulting in a great impact on the overall production and delivery pace, according to the report.
Nio's F2 plant in NeoPark has also been under closed management recently, with the plant's vehicle assembly line suspended, the report said, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Nio has not responded to the report as of press time.
Notably, it looks like Nio's factories have not completely stopped running.
The lockdown of the factories and the sporadic production shutdowns have made Nio's recent deliveries significantly less efficient, the report said.
Many consumers say they ordered cars that were scheduled for delivery in October, but by late October the cars hadn't started production, and some were told that delivery would be delayed until November, the report noted.
The latest feedback from some owners over the past two days shows that production at the Nio plant has not come to a complete halt and that some new cars have started to be in the production process, the report mentioned.
By the end of October, the shipping of vehicles already off the line was accelerating. Previously during the lockdown, the vehicles in the factory were once unable to be shipped out smoothly, according to 36kr.
The company reported earlier today that it delivered 10,059 vehicles in October, down 7.5 percent from 10,878 in September and up 174.31 percent from 3,667 in the same month last year.
The delivery volume included 5,979 SUVs, including 2,814 ES7s, and 4,080 electric sedans, including 3,050 ET7s and 1,030 ET5s.
Nio currently sells six models in China, including three SUVs based on the NT 1.0 platform -- the ES8, ES6 and EC6 -- and three models based on the NT 2.0 platform -- the ES7, ET7 and ET5.
The company did not release a breakdown of deliveries for models based on the NT 1.0 platform, though calculations show they delivered a total of 3,165 units in October.
Only the ET5 is currently being produced at Nio's F2 plant in NeoPark, with all other models being produced at the JAC-Nio F1 plant.
The company's executives had previously said that the ET5 would have a faster capacity climb than the other models, but the uncertainty created by Covid control has apparently hampered that effort.
Nio's press release announcing its delivery figures said that production and delivery of its vehicles was limited by operational challenges at its plants and supply chain fluctuations due to the Covid-19 incident in certain parts of China.
