In a significant development for the electric vehicle industry, China’s EV manufacturer NIO Inc. (NIO) has successfully developed a battery with a range of 1,000 km (621 miles). The live test drive, streamed by CEO William Li, showcased the E17 electric car traveling for 14 hours on a single charge from Shanghai to Xiamen.

Li, often referred to as China’s Elon Musk, shared the video on the Chinese social media site Weibo on December 17, demonstrating that even after covering 1,000 km, the battery still had 3% charge remaining.

The E17 electric car was powered by Nio’s 150 kWh battery, which has the highest energy density in the world, Li said in the post.

The electric car poses a threat to Tesla’s Model S which can travel about 405 miles on a single charge.

The company plans to mass produce the 150 kWh batteries in April 2024. However, it is estimated that each battery will cost around 298,000 yuan, which is equivalent to $42,100, the same as Tesla’s Model Y in China.

For customers who can’t afford the high price, the company plans to present them with another option. They can purchase the electric car without a battery and then pay a monthly subscription fee to the company to use its battery swap station networks, where they can swap the dead batteries for fully charged ones.

Nio has collaborated with Fujian-based CATL to produce cells with a solid-state electrolyte diaphragm, silicon composite anode and a high-nickel cathode to travel on single charges in all weather conditions.

Earlier this week, Nio unveiled its latest executive sedan ET9 at $112,000 to rival Mercedes’ Maybach and Porsche’s Panamera series.