Battery swap network concept

The essence of battery swap stations is energy storage factories. This core logic is still not fully understood by many people.

For example, during the Spring Festival, the long queues at charging stations in service areas are enough to drive people crazy, exposing the many flaws of the charging model: fragile charging piles, untimely maintenance, and even with technology upgrades allowing a 15-minute charge, a single pile can only serve about 60 vehicles per day at most, with no peak load regulation.

Battery swapping offers another solution: three minutes to a full charge, with an experience almost as convenient as refueling. The advantage of pre-stored energy is that it only requires a standard power grid, without the need for additional high-capacity infrastructure, making it more convenient in every aspect.

Once this layer is understood, the business prospects of battery swap stations become clear. Essentially, they operate like REITs, collecting rent. Every additional battery-swappable vehicle on the road means another tenant. The battery swap network is open to all third-party brands, forming an alliance and pooling a vast tenant base. This user base will generate stable, predictable cash flow.

Moreover, the role of battery swap stations is flexible—not just as after-sales support for automakers but also as efficient retail electricity providers.

During extreme weather events that disrupt household power supply or when the grid is overloaded, the widespread battery swap stations, with their large energy reserves, can even serve as part of emergency social infrastructure.

This is undoubtedly a challenging path, requiring massive upfront investment and unified technical standards. But it is the right one, as it fundamentally addresses efficiency pain points and builds a new model with both service value and commercial potential.

Automakers are just a bonus—Elon’s energy network and Lei’s ecosystem are the real future for NIO.