BYD contemplating the establishment of a second assembly plant in Europe by 2025, revealed European managing director Michael Shu at the FT’s Future of the Car conference.
The move comes as part of BYD’s strategic vision to penetrate the European market further. Shu indicated that BYD intends to introduce a cost-effective electric vehicle (EV) based on its Chinese Seagull model to the European market.
The European variant of the Seagull, which currently sells for under $10,000 in China, is expected to be priced below 20,000 euros ($21,550) in Europe.
This competitive pricing aims to address the significant price disparity between EVs and their combustion-engine counterparts, which has dampened the demand for zero-emission vehicles and compelled European automakers to focus on developing more affordable EV models.
Shu expressed BYD’s ambition to emerge as a leading EV manufacturer in Europe by 2030, stating, “We are confident that we could be in a leading position by 2030.” Last December, BYD announced its plans to construct an EV plant in Hungary, making it the first major Chinese automaker to establish a production facility in Europe.
The announcement coincided with Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Hungary, highlighting the growing economic ties between the two nations. Hungary, under the leadership of Prime Minister Viktor Orban, has emerged as a key trade and investment partner for China within the European Union.
This burgeoning relationship has led to substantial investments from Chinese battery and electric vehicle manufacturers in Hungary, with CATLĀ being one of the prominent investors, committing 7.3 billion euros ($7.86 billion) to establish a battery plant in Debrecen.
