Gasgoo Munich- On October 27, a team of four NIO ES8 owners—driving first-, second-, and third-generation models—completed an 8,045-kilometer trek from Guangzhou to the Horgos Port in Xinjiang. The 13-day journey, themed "Retracing the Eight-Year Journey: All the Way to Xinjiang on Battery Swaps," traversed 10 provinces and 60 cities, stopping at 79 NIO highway swap stations along the way.
Traveling along national highways including the G45, G5, G2, and G30, the convoy relied exclusively on NIO's highway swap network for power. Drivers spent just three minutes swapping batteries before hitting the road again, eliminating the need for traditional charging stops. The expedition served as a real-world validation: starting from any swap station in the country, it is now possible to reach every provincial-level administrative region in mainland China using only battery swaps.
Image source: NIO
Eight years ago, when the NIO Founder's Edition ES8 first entered Xinjiang in 2018, the region had just two charging piles, making long-distance electric travel a novelty. "Eight years on, NIO's energy network has grown from zero to over 9,000 stations," said Doctor Jin, the trip organizer. "Long-distance charging is now 'worry-free and effortless'—it no longer requires courage or meticulous planning."
As of October 28, 2026, NIO has deployed 9,715 power stations nationwide—comprising 4,202 battery swap stations and 5,513 charging stations—ranking first in the industry by construction volume. Its highway swap network now totals 1,074 stations, forming a "9 vertical, 11 horizontal" grid that connects 16 major urban clusters and links more than 550 cities. NIO has also opened 92 "power sightseeing routes," including the G318 Sichuan-Tibet Line, the Yunnan-Tibet Line, and the Silk Road, with plans to complete 100 such routes by 2026.
