Nio ES9 hits 40,000 deliveries, adding latest 10,000 in 49 days

• nio-es9" class="tag-link text-primary font-medium">Nio ES9 reached the latest milestone less than 6 months after deliveries began.
• The ES9 and ES8 together accounted for 85.25% of Nio main brand deliveries in October, as large SUVs continued to underpin brand sales.

Nio Inc's (NYSE: NIO) flagship SUV ES9 has reached 40,000 cumulative deliveries, less than 6 months after the premium electric model began reaching customers.

Nio founder, chairman and CEO William Li announced the milestone on Weibo on Wednesday, and handed over the 40,000th ES9 to Zhang Wenjie, chairman of Hangzhou H-Power Biopharmaceutical Group.

H-Power is a Chinese pharmaceutical company with businesses spanning biopharmaceuticals, medical nutrition and high-end dentistry.

Li said the ES9 continued to set delivery records in China's premium battery electric vehicle segment around the 500,000 yuan ($74,410) price point, leading sales in that segment for 5 consecutive months.

The ES9 previously reached 30,000 cumulative deliveries on September 23. Based on the announcement dates of the 2 milestones, the latest 10,000 deliveries took 49 days, slightly longer than the 46 days needed for the previous 10,000.

The model was launched in China on May 27, with deliveries beginning the following day. It reached 10,000 and 20,000 cumulative deliveries on June 26 and August 8, respectively.

Positioned above the ES8, the ES9 had a starting price of 498,000 yuan including the battery pack at launch. The model features a 6-seat layout, a 900-volt high-voltage architecture and fast battery swapping.

The ES9 delivered 6,714 vehicles in October, down 12.87% from September, ending 2 consecutive months of sequential growth, according to China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) data compiled by CnEVPost.

Cumulative ES9 deliveries stood at 38,917 at the end of October. The model contributed 37.04% of Nio main brand deliveries last month, continuing to support brand sales alongside the ES8.

Combined ES8 and ES9 deliveries totaled 15,452 in October, accounting for 85.25% of Nio main brand deliveries and highlighting the continued concentration of sales in the 2 large SUVs.

The Nio main brand delivered 18,125 vehicles in October, up 5.73% year-on-year, but growth at the brand and Firefly failed to offset a decline at Onvo.

Nio Inc delivered 34,246 vehicles overall last month, down 15.23% year-on-year, ending 31 consecutive months of year-on-year growth.

In the first 10 months of the year, the company delivered 334,547 vehicles, up 38.46% year-on-year.