William Li says Nio is slated to debut its first European model, Firefly, in the first half of 2025.

Nio, a Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker, plans to launch its first Firefly model in Europe in the first half of 2025. The company will rely on local partner outlets for sales, unlike its direct sales model in Europe. The Firefly brand will have one partner in one country, and it’s possible for one partner to be responsible for sales in multiple countries. Nio has already signed up several partners in Europe who have given positive feedback on the first model. The company originally planned to launch the Firefly brand in Europe first, but changed its strategy to launch in China first due to additional tariffs in Europe. Despite the tariffs, Firefly is competitive in Europe, and the company will work with local partners on infrastructure development. The dedicated battery swap stations for Firefly cost a third as much to build as Nio’s stations and can be assembled quickly. The Firefly model will be launched in China in April 2025, with pre-sales starting in China yesterday at a price of RMB 148,800 yuan ($20,390).