Geely Takes 30% Stake In Nio Power: Battery Swap Tech Pushes Rivals Towards Shared Infrastructure

Geely Holding Group is buying a 30% stake in Nio Power, the battery-swapping and charging business of rival EV maker Nio. The deal, announced on 28 September 2026, values Nio Power at roughly $2.4 billion (AED 8.81 billion) after the investment and turns an earlier technical cooperation into full capital and operational integration.

Geely will contribute its entire equity in Yiyi Power, which is its commercial-fleet battery-swap subsidiary, plus $95.37 million (AED 350 million) in cash. In return it receives a 30% stake. Nio China retains majority control at approximately 63.6%, with an existing financial investor holding the remaining minority. 

On the other hand, Nio is taking a 10% stake in Geely’s smart-charging company, Haohan Energy. The two sides will connect their charging networks, share technology and standards, and jointly expand service coverage. Geely also receives an option to invest a further $95.37 million (AED 350 million) later, which could raise its holding to around 34%. With this deal, things got a lot more interesting in the EV charging and battery swapping world. 

What Do Geely & Nio Actually Gain?

For Nio, the deal brings capital, immediate commercial-fleet volume through Yiyi Power, and faster growth of the swap network. Nio has publicly targeted 10,000 swap stations by 2030; Geely’s resources and fleet customers help make that number more realistic.

For Geely, the attraction is access to China’s largest dedicated battery-swap infrastructure without having to build it from scratch. The company can now develop consumer-facing swappable models and use Nio Power stations instead of creating a parallel network. Both sides reduce the kind of duplicate investment that has characterised the Chinese EV industry in recent years. 

Nio founder and CEO William Li described the partnership as a deliberate effort to curb cutthroat competition through shared infrastructure. The collaboration is explicitly open to other manufacturers joining later, a signal that both companies see battery swapping as potential industry infrastructure rather than a single-brand feature.

Is Battery Swapping Actually Better Than DC Fast Charging?

It depends on the use case.

Swapping still wins on pure time: a full “refuel” in three to five minutes versus 20 to 40 minutes even on a fast DC charger. It also allows better thermal management of the battery pack and opens the door to Battery-as-a-Service models, where the customer does not own the expensive battery outright. For taxis, ride-hailing fleets and high-mileage drivers, the operational advantage is real.

DC fast charging, however, has improved dramatically. It works with any compatible car, requires no proprietary station network, and is simpler for the average private owner. Swapping only becomes compelling at scale, which is where the Geely-Nio structure shines. Shared standards and a denser station network are the only practical way to move swapping beyond a niche.

If the model succeeds, batteries increasingly look like a service rather than a permanent part of the vehicle. That is the direction Nio has been pushing for years with its Battery-as-a-Service offering.

Nio Battery Swapping in the UAE

Nio already operates in the UAE and has opened a hub on Sheikh Zayed Road that showcases its Power technology, including battery swapping. Stations are not yet widespread locally, but the technology is part of the brand’s local story. See our earlier coverage of the NIO Hub in Dubai and the NIO EL8 launch.

Geely and its related brands (including Zeekr and Riddara) have an established presence through AGMC and other partners. Any future Geely models designed for Nio Power swapping would still need local station investment before the feature becomes useful for UAE customers. At present, the partnership is focused on China, while a Middle East rollout could possibly be on the cards.

Will Geely Launch Swap-Equipped Products?

Yes. The agreement includes plans for Geely to develop consumer battery-swappable models, with Nio Power providing the swap service. Commercial-fleet swapping from the former Yiyi Power business will also be integrated into the larger Nio Power network.

A subsidiary of Geely Holdings named Livan Auto currently offers three models with battery swap technology. However, they aren’t available in the UAE yet. With this new partnership, we might see Geely-branded cars that feature rapid battery swap tech.

Whether those models appear in the UAE, and on what timeline, will depend on infrastructure decisions that have not yet been announced. For now the direction is clear: battery swapping is being treated as shared infrastructure rather than a proprietary gimmick.

For wider context on the local UAE EV market, see our Top 10 Best EVs in the UAE and EV vs Hybrid cost comparison.

Editor’s Take

This is one of the more rational moves in the Chinese EV sector this year. Rather than each brand building parallel swap networks, two significant players are pooling assets, standards, and capital. If the model works, battery swapping becomes more viable for everyone. If it stalls, the industry will at least have tested cooperation before pouring more money into redundant infrastructure. Either way, the signal is that pure proprietary networks are becoming harder to justify.

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