More companies' new product launch plans have been derailed by the new wave of Covid outbreaks.

(Image credit: Niutron)

One day before its planned launch date, Chinese electric vehicle (EV) startup Niutron has announced the cancellation of its first model launch event due to the Covid pandemic.

In line with the relevant authorities' Covid control measures, the launch of Niutron's smart electric SUV - Niutron NV - will be postponed, according to an announcement made by the company today.

The company will hold the event after the Covid situation stabilizes, it said, without disclosing a new launch date.

Niutron, the EV company founded by Li Yinan, founder of Chinese electric scooter maker Niu Technologies (NASDAQ: NIU), was scheduled to launch its first model, the Niutron NV, at 19:30 Beijing time on March 31.

The Niutron brand was announced on December 15 last year, and Li said at the time that the first model, a midsize SUV, was scheduled for a small pilot production run in March 2022, with deliveries starting in September.

The model will be available to consumers in extended-range as well as all-electric versions.

Niutron is headquartered in Beijing, with an R&D center in Shanghai and a core R&D team of nearly 1,000 people with an average of more than 10 years of experience, according to an article posted on its official WeChat public account late last year.

Niutron has developed the Gemini platform and will build several models on two different technical routes, pure electric and extended-range, according to the article.

The outbreak of the new Covid pandemic in China is affecting the pace of new product launches by car companies.

An MPV model from Voyah, the Wuhan, Hubei-based, premium EV brand owned by Dongfeng Motor, that was scheduled to launch on April 7 has been postponed.

Nio had planned to unveil the ES7 in April, but with the Beijing auto show likely to be postponed, the launch event for the new SUV has been postponed until the end of May.

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