More than 600 workers gave up their Labor Day holiday leave to continue working on the NeoPark Phase I (North) project.

(Image credit: China National Radio)

It is common for construction workers in China to forego holidays in order to earn as much income as possible, even if it is a holiday used to honor laborers.

During the Labor Day holiday, while most people are enjoying their vacation, the site of the NeoPark Phase I (North) project, a key construction project in Anhui province, is a busy scene, state-owned China National Radio reported today.

More than 600 workers have given up their vacations to accelerate the construction of the project, the report said. China's Labor Day holiday this year runs from April 30 to May 4.

The project is currently in the construction phase of the main structure, with the construction of all the main steel elements completed and 90 percent of the secondary steel elements completed, according to the report.

The construction of the project's envelope, secondary structure and flooring is proceeding in parallel to ensure that the plant will be handed over on June 30 this year, according to the report.

"We are doing our best to prevent and control the epidemic and ensure safety, and at the same time, we are constructing the project as usual and moving forward at full speed," the report quoted the project's manager as saying.

NeoPark is an electric vehicle industrial park jointly promoted by Nio (NYSE: NIO, HKG: 9866) and the Hefei municipal government.

On April 29, 2021, the Hefei government and Nio jointly announced the official start of construction of NeoPark. It covers an area of 16,950 mu (11.3 square kilometers) and is expected to have an annual capacity of 1 million vehicles and 100 GWh of batteries, with an upfront investment of RMB 50 billion.

Hefei's goal is that NeoPark will have an annual output value of more than RMB 500 billion after completion, and will bring together more than 50,000 talents from around the world to become one of the world's leading places for the intelligent electric vehicle industry chain.

NeoPark is not designed solely for Nio, although William Li, the company's founder, chairman and CEO, said the company would be happy to use the park's full capacity if Nio could grow large enough.

(Image credit: Nio)

It's not clear whether NeoPark Phase I (North) belongs to Nio or another company, as China National Radio's report does not explicitly mention it.

But previous reports said the project would be used for auto parts plants and that it was topped out on April 16.

Nio's second plant, the first project in NeoPark, began construction on April 29 last year, and the main building was completed and accepted in early November.

At the end of November last year, Nio began installing equipment at the plant, which the company said at the time would see the first model produced there roll off the line in the second quarter of 2022 for a pilot vehicle and in the third quarter for a production vehicle.

On April 29 of this year, the first anniversary of the campus' construction launch, Nio announced that the first tooling trial (TT) builds of the ET5 sedan rolled off the production line at the site.

The ET5 is the first model to be produced at the site, and this latest development marks the completion of the site's production line and its readiness for production validation, Nio said. Deliveries of the model are expected to begin in September.