Nio's battery asset operator Mirattery has entered into a partnership with CATL (SHE: 300750) involving equity investment, signaling that the Chinese battery giant is increasing its bet on battery swap business.
Mirattery announced that it signed a strategic cooperation agreement with CATL today in Hefei, Anhui province, to deepen cooperation in areas including capital, technology, and business models.
Mirattery CEO Lai Xiaoming and CATL's general manager for the battery swap business Yang Jun signed the agreement on behalf of both parties, according to annoucement.
The strategic cooperation covers equity investment, battery rental service operations and user services, co-construction and sharing of battery swap networks, and recycling of battery resources, Mirattery said.
The cooperation also involves EV battery technology collaboration, other innovative technologies, and business model expansion, aiming to establish a new cooperation model for upstream and downstream synergy in the industry chain, Mirattery said.
Mirattery did not provide further details on the cooperation. In a report on March 20, domestic media outlet 36kr said that CATL would increase its investment in Mirattery.
On March 18, Nio announced a new partnership with CATL to jointly build the world's largest battery swap service network.
Nio said at the time that the two parties would also engage in capital cooperation, with CATL advancing an investment of up to RMB 2.5 billion in its power unit Nio Power.
Hefei is home to Nio's two factories. The EV maker held a pre-sales event for its sub-brand Onvo's flagship SUV L90 in the city just yesterday, with its executives hosting a media roundtable this morning.
This suggests that Nio may have played a significant role in the new agreement between Mirattery and CATL. Mirattery is headquartered in Wuhan, Hubei province, while CATL is based in Ningde, Fujian province.
Mirattery was established on August 18, 2020, as a joint venture between CATL, Nio, Guotai Junan, and Hubei Science and Technology Investment.
In August 2020, Nio launched its BaaS (Battery as a Service) battery rental business, with Mirattery serving as the manager of the battery assets used for leasing.
At the time of its establishment, each of the four initial investors held a 25 percent stake.
After several years of equity changes, Nio is now the largest shareholder with a 19.4 percent stake, while CATL and Hubei Science Technology Investment each hold a 10.68 percent stake, tying for third place.
Mirattery's battery asset under management has exceeded 27 GWh after nearly five years of rapid development, serving over 350,000 users, the company announced today.
