NIO Backs Silk Road Challenge 2026 With 14 EVs for 20,000-Km Eurasia Journey

The Chinese automaker will support a multi-country electric rally linking Asia and Europe, showcasing its battery-swap network and long-distance travel infrastructure 

NIO co-founder and president Qin Lihong (back left) witnesses the signing of a cooperation agreement for Silk Road Challenge 2026 on September 10, 2026

NIO has partnered with the “Silk Road Challenge 2026” to provide 14 NIO and ONVO vehicles for the all-electric long-distance journey across Eurasia, the company announced on Sept. 10. The convoy is scheduled to depart from Xi’an on September 16 and travel through Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Russia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Türkiye, Bulgaria, Serbia and other countries before reaching Budapest, Hungary, according to the company's schedule. 

NIO's power station

The journey across Eurasia is expected to last 41 days and cover more than 20,000 kilometers across 11 countries. The fleet will include NIO ES8, ES6 and ET5T models, as well as ONVO L90 and L80 vehicles, with NIO providing vehicle services and technical support. In China, the fleet will travel west along NIO's Silk Road battery swap route. 

The company said the fleet will rely entirely on battery swapping for replenishment during the Chinese leg. The 3,605-kilometer battery swap route is scheduled to become fully operational in late September, with 33 battery swap stations along the way. Once the route opens, users departing from any NIO battery swap station in China will be able to reach every provincial-level administrative region on the Chinese mainland using battery swapping throughout, the company said. 

Previously, NIO has already established EV travel routes along the G318 Sichuan-Tibet Highway, Yunnan-Tibet Highway and Hexi Corridor. The expansion builds on an existing charging and battery swap route. In July 2023, Nio announced the opening of its Silk Road charging and battery swap route from Xi'an to Horgos in Xinjiang. That route covered 3,133 kilometers and had a combined 33 charging and battery swap stations. The newly announced route is longer, and all 33 facilities are battery swap stations. 

Expanding coverage along long-distance routes is part of NIO's effort to ease concerns about replenishing EV batteries on road trips. Through its Power Journeys program, the company deploys charging and battery swap facilities along tourism and leisure routes. 

On September 6, NIO announced the opening of its ninety-first Power Journeys route, a 1,849-kilometer circuit in southern Shanxi province with 13 battery swap stations. The company plans to expand the number of such routes to 100 this year. In terms of overall battery swap infrastructure, 

NIO power station in China as of Sept, 10

NIO currently operates 9,334 charging and swap facilities across China. This include 4,079 battery swap stations and 5,255 charging stations, providing more than 200 million charging and swap services to date. The completion of the Silk Road swap route means NIO’s battery swap network is expanding from its previous focus on urban and intercity mobility toward long-distance transportation corridors. 

Compared with simply increasing the number of urban stations, the density and continuity of infrastructure along long-distance routes represent another key factor that directly affects the EV travel experience.