On March 6, Hefei announced a special purchase subsidy for battery swappable vehicles of as much as 10,000 CNY, effective until end of March and eligible nationwide.

From March 6, 2025, to March 31, 2025, customers who purchase a NIO or Onvo car can benefit from this exclusive purchase subsidy, with the subsidy amount dependent on the price of the vehicle.

Buyers of vehicles with an official guide price (including optional extras) fall into three tiers of subsidy: those priced below 250,000 CNY receive a 2,000 CNY subsidy; those between 250,000 and 400,000 CNY receive a 6,000 CNY subsidy; and those above 400,000 CNY receive a 10,000 CNY subsidy.

In other words, the Onvo L60 is eligible for a 2,000 CNY subsidy, the ET5, ET5T, ES6, EC6 (referred to as 5566 in China) are eligible for 6,000 CNY, and only the ET7, EC7, ES8, and ET9 are eligible for 10,000 CNY.

Just a week ago, on February 28, Onvo had upgraded its 3-year interest-free financing program to 5-year interest-free with minimum 30% down payment for a limited time until March 31, 2025.

It’s crunch time for NIO’s sub-brand Onvo as the company’s President Alan Ai made a bold claim last November that Onvo will deliver in excess of 20,000 L60 by the sixth month, in March 2025.

Alan even doubled-down, saying that he would step down if he could not deliver on the promise.

However, the first two months of 2025 indicate that achieving that goal is far from easy, having only delivered 5,912 and 4,049 units in January and February, respectively.

As of February, Onvo has delivered 30,722 vehicles in 6 months since launch.

Looking at the weekly insurance registrations, both NIO and Onvo sales are ramping up since the beginning of February, delivering 3,100 and 1,800 vehicles through week 9 (Feb 24 - Mar 2), respectively.

To reach 20,000 units in March, Onvo will need to deliver 4,000 to 5,000 units weekly (in addition to the last 3 days of March), a feat that Onvo has only achieved once since debut, during the last week of December with 4,200 units registered.

Further details on Hefei

The Economic and Technological Development Zone Management Committee of Hefei City, Anhui Province, released the "Development Plan for Supporting the Pilot Application of Battery Swappable New Energy Vehicle (Draft)" plan.

As one of the 11 pilot cities for the battery swap model for new energy vehicles designated by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), Hefei will further promote the extension, strengthening, and supplementation of battery swappable new energy vehicles.

Based on this, the Economic and Technological Development Zone of Hefei City will provide special rewards and subsidies to companies that promote the application of the battery swap model, which effectively benefits NIO, the single major battery swap leader for passenger vehicles in China.

Eligible companies must follow the relevant requirements of MIIT, provincial, and municipal governments to promote the application of battery swap, establish a comprehensive service system, and provide better and more convenient NEV products and services.