NIO's F4 plant integrates Leopard's original plant, and more information may be announced in March-April, according to local media.

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

CnEVPost reported about a month ago that NIO's (NYSE: NIO) F4 plant for its sub-brand with internal codename Firefly would be located in Chuzhou, Anhui province. Now, a new report from a leading local media outlet confirmed the information and provided more details.

NIO's fourth vehicle assembly plant will be located in the Chuzhou Economic Development Zone and will produce models for the company's third brand, internally codenamed Firefly, Cailian reported today, citing sources from the city.

The plant integrates Leopard's former factories and more information could be announced in March-April, the report said, citing a Chuzhou government source in charge of recruiting business investment.

Leopard, which was built in 1950, once sold more than 100,000 units in 2017, making it the largest SUV maker in China. Last year, Leopard filed for bankruptcy reorganization, after its business conditions continued to deteriorate.

NIO's current models on sale include the older ES8, ES7, ES6, EC6, ET7 and ET5. it unveiled two new models - the EC7 coupe SUV and the new ES8 - on NIO Day 2022, which was held on December 24, 2022, with deliveries set to begin in May 2023 and deliveries will begin in May and June 2023, respectively.

Only the ET5 is currently produced at the company's F2 plant in NeoPark, while all other models are produced at the F1 plant, the JAC NIO Advanced Manufacturing Site, both located in Hefei.

On January 26, NIO co-founder and president Qin Lihong said at a face-to-face communication event with owners that NIO is preparing models for a sub-brand codenamed ALPS, with deliveries expected to begin within 2024.

The company's other sub-brand, codenamed Firefly, is also in the planning stages and will be delivered first to European consumers, Qin said.

NIO's smaller model is in development and will debut in Europe and is expected to be available in the third quarter of 2024, according to Qin.

A source told CnEVPost on January 31 that the F4 plant for NIO's internal Firefly sub-brand will be located in Chuzhou, Anhui province, while the F3 plant for the internal ALPS sub-brand will continue to be located in Hefei.

The F4 plant will also assemble vehicles for the Firefly project and produce some parts, the source said, adding that the brand will initially produce vehicles mainly for export to Europe, with production scheduled for the third quarter of 2024.

The Chuzhou plant will produce small cars priced at around 100,000 yuan (15,000), the source said.

NIO working on plants for 2 sub-brands, F4 plant won't be in Hefei, source says