A pink Nezha V and black Nezha U Pro electric automotive models are on display at a store in Shanghai on Nov. 7, 2021.
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BEIJING — One other budget-priced electric automotive brand is taking off in China, this time selling compact SUVs.
Nezha, named after a feisty Chinese mythological character, claims its automotive deliveries greater than doubled in 2022 to surpass 152,000 vehicles. Most deliveries were of the Nezha V, a compact SUV whose post-subsidy price starts at 83,900 yuan ($12,000).
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In contrast, Nio‘s larger SUVs — with an extended driving range and lots of other features — start around 400,000 yuan.
Nevertheless, Nio delivered greater than 122,000 electric cars in 2022, up by a modest 34% from the prior 12 months. That features the corporate’s premium-priced sedans.
Nio has emphasized its focus is on the more area of interest, higher-end segment, but has hinted at plans to launch a mass market brand.
In an earnings call in early November, CEO William Li said the corporate had a gathering that day with its mass market team, which expected each model within the segment could sell greater than 50,000 units a month, in response to a FactSet transcript.
That is potentially 600,000 cars per model per 12 months.
Budget electric automotive Hongguang Mini has held the bestseller spot amongst latest energy passenger cars in China, a category which incorporates hybrids. As of November, year-to-date sales had exceeded 370,000 vehicles, in response to the China Passenger Automobile Association.
Nevertheless, the Hongguang Mini is a tiny automotive compared with Nezha’s SUVs and sedans.
Nezha also said it exported about 3,500 cars in 2022. Since late 2021, the corporate has pushed into Southeast Asia, starting with a partnership in Thailand. Nezha, also often called Neta, has an English-language website that shows it’s on the lookout for partners within the Philippines and Cambodia.
The corporate is a brand under startup Hozon Auto. As of July 2022, Nezha said it had raised nearly 10 billion yuan for its Series D, or fourth stage of fundraising after initial investment.
China’s EV market shakes off economic slowdown
The Chinese government has supported the event of the domestic electric automotive industry. Cities have preferential policies that encourage people to change to electric-powered cars.
And despite the drag of Covid controls on China’s retail sales in 2022, electric automotive sales remained a pocket of growth.
Greater than 1 / 4 of passenger cars sold in 2022 through the tip of November were latest energy vehicles, in response to the China Passenger Automobile Association. Monthly figures from the association typically come out in the course of the month.
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Nevertheless, competition is fierce. Chinese battery and automotive manufacturer BYD remained an enormous with sales of greater than 911,000 electric cars in 2022 — about 180% greater than a 12 months earlier.
The corporate has a big selection of models. BYD’s latest luxury brand Yangwang is slated for an in depth launch on Thursday.
Electric automotive brand Aion, a by-product of state-owned GAC Motor, announced sales greater than doubled in 2022 to a record high of 271,000 vehicles.
Huawei’s co-developed latest Aito brand said that because it began deliveries in March 2022, cumulative deliveries as of the tip of the 12 months exceeded 75,000 vehicles.
Li Auto delivers greater than Nio
Nio’s growth in 2022 also fell behind that of Li Auto, one other U.S.-listed Chinese electric automotive company whose SUVs are in an analogous price range. Nevertheless, the corporate’s cars include a fuel tank to increase the battery’s driving range.
Li Auto said its deliveries for the 12 months grew by 47% to greater than 133,000 cars.
