The Chinese auto brand delayed the launch of its electric SUV for an unexpected reason

Li Auto said it will postpone the launch of electric SUV models in China until 2025 due to some arising problems.

Main content Hide / Show Why did Li Auto postpone the launch of the electric car? Li Auto’s plan

According to Reuters news agency, Li Auto auto brand recently confirmed that it will postpone the launch of pure electric SUV models to next year due to the shortage of fast charging stations.

Li Auto is a Chinese car company that once made a splash in the auto market thanks to its four hybrid EREV (range extended electric vehicle) models, but is currently facing difficulties when the Li Mega pure electric MPV model does not meet expectations.

The company had planned to launch three pure electric SUVs this year, but on May 20, Li Auto CEO and founder Li Xiang said in a press conference that the launch of the electric crossover

Mr. Li Xiang explained that this delay is due to the need to install enough fast charging stations to meet buyer demand.

Second, sales of this electric SUV are estimated to reach 10,000 units per month.

According to Reuters, Li Auto once expected that the pure electric MPV model Li Mega could beat all competitors in the price range of over 500,000 yuan in the Chinese market.

Li Mega is the company’s first pure electric car model, equipped with CATL’s 103 kWh Qilin battery pack, allowing the car to operate up to 709 km after each full charge.

Li Auto Mega electric MPV.

Reports said Li Auto delivered more than 3,000 Mega cars in March, while analysts previously predicted the company could sell about 8,000 cars a month.

Specifically, the discount applied to Li Mega is 30,000 yuan, bringing the starting price from 559,800 yuan to 529,800 yuan (equivalent to about 1.9 billion dong).

China Merchants Bank International analyst Shi Ji said Li Auto has reduced its profit expectations for 2024. He believes the Chinese automaker is focusing on building a stronger foundation for the success of SUV models.

Experts say that investing in electric vehicle infrastructure, similar to what Tesla and Nio have done in China, could affect Li Auto’s profits.

According to Reuters, as of mid-May, Li Auto had installed more than 400 fast charging stations in China. Meanwhile, Tesla has set up nearly 2,000 Supercharger fast charging stations in the country, and Nio owns more than 2,200 charging stations.