During China’s Golden Week travel rush from October 1 to 7, Nio’s network of 4,168 battery swap stations completed 1,192,221 swaps. The surge set a single-day record of 183,664 swaps during the return travel peak, showing the scale of electric vehicle energy replenishment infrastructure.
China’s Golden Week holiday tested electric vehicle infrastructure as millions traveled between October 1 and 7, with Nio Inc. (NYSE: NIO) reporting that its network completed nearly 1.2 million battery swaps. The daily average for battery swaps rose 22% compared to the same period last year, according to a holiday report released by the company.
Record Daily Swaps and Highway Demand During Golden Week
Daily battery swaps reached 183,469 on October 1, marking China’s National Day. That single-day record was broken during the return travel peak on October 5, when swaps reached 183,664. At peak demand, a vehicle completed a battery swap and departed every 0.47 seconds on average across the network.
Highways accounted for a major share of the holiday demand. Nio’s highway charging and battery swap facilities supplied over 24.83 million kWh of electricity, representing a 30.8% increase year-on-year. The company operates 1,073 highway battery swap stations connecting more than 550 cities. According to the company, these highway locations saved users more than 309,124 hours of waiting for energy replenishment compared to traditional charging. Nio’s battery swap stations now cover more than 1,300 districts and counties across China, and battery swap orders in county towns rose 144.2% from the preceding period during the holiday.
Comparing Swapping Speed Against BYD Flash Charging
BYD utilized its network of 12,165 Flash Charging stations to facilitate over 1.22 million charging sessions, serving 188,344 vehicles on its peak day. In contrast, Nio’s 4,168 swap stations served 183,664 vehicles on its peak day.
When evaluated per station, a single Nio battery-swap station carried out approximately three times as many sessions as a BYD Flash Charging station on their respective busiest days. Nio’s busiest station completed 211 swaps in a single day, while BYD’s busiest site recorded 160 charging sessions.
| Metric | BYD (Flash Charging) | Nio (Battery Swapping) |
|---|---|---|
| Total stations | 12,165 | 4,168 |
| Peak single-day services | 188,344 vehicles | 183,664 swaps |
| Peak day average service | 15.5 vehicles per station | 44 swaps per station |
| Peak station service volume | 160 charges in a day | 211 swaps in a day |
| Peak station session time | 9 minutes per charge | 6 minutes per swap |
Nio Adds 482 Swap Stations This Year
The holiday milestones coincide with corporate and structural developments for Nio’s energy business. Nio reported adding 482 swap stations domestically this year as of Friday, leaving 518 stations remaining to meet its target of 1,000 additions in 2026.
Retail Investors React as Nio Shares Rise 1%
The record holiday usage drew attention from retail investors on platforms like Stocktwits and TradingView, where users highlighted network usage and remarked that the battery swap model is being secured in China and can flourish. While some traders focused on the usage milestones, others pointed to capital expenditures and net losses across the sector.
U.S.-listed shares of Nio rose 1% heading into the subsequent trading week following six consecutive weekly declines, closing the prior week down 6% at $3.37.