(Yicai) Sept. 14 -- Chinese electric vehicle startup Nio reportedly intends to establish a joint venture with battery maker Svolt Energy Technology to develop large cylinder cells.

Nio plans a pilot production line with Svolt Energy in Maanshan, Anhui province, with the pair merging some of their research and development teams, but keeping manufacturing and procurement separated, tech news outlet 36Kr reported yesterday, citing industry chain insiders. Mass production will likely begin in 2025, one person noted.

By collaborating with Changzhou-based Svolt Energy, Nio's large cylinder cell prototypes will be brought to the pilot production line for quality verification and further development, another person said.

Last year, Nio came under pressure from surging lithium ore and power battery prices, though it invested in the battery swap business and started preparations to make batteries. The Shanghai-based carmaker plans to build a battery plant in Hefei, Anhui province, with an annual output capacity of 40 gigawatt-hours to meet demand of around 400,000 long-range EVs.

Power batteries come in cylinder, prismatic, and pouch cells. Large cylinder batteries have a higher capacity density, are safer, and last longer. Tesla unveiled a 4680 cylindrical battery in September 2020, but is yet to begin mass production.

Established in 2018, Svolt Energy is a spin-off of Great Wall Motor. Its installed capacity reached 2.34 GWh in the first half of this year, ranking seventh in China.

Editor: Martin Kadiev