BYD Opens Two New Plants in Europe to Boost Production

China’s largest automaker, BYD, is intensifying its efforts to become a leading player in Europe with two new production facilities set to begin operations next year. These plants will have an annual capacity of 500,000 vehicles, according to Automotive News Europe. While BYD’s plans for Europe are bold, success won’t come easily. In 2024—four years after BYD began selling in Europe—the company sold just under 50,000 cars in the European Union and the UK, tripling its 2023 sales which were slightly below 18,000 units, as per Dataforce statistics. BYD ranks 31st in sales and continues to trail behind the most successful Chinese automaker, MG SAIC, which sold over 190,000 units. Last year, MG sold 243,390 vehicles in Europe, placing it as the 20th brand. BYD’s strategy includes targeting the popular small SUV segment with its new Atto 2 model. The company has also revised its initial plan to sell only battery electric vehicles (BEVs) in Europe and will now offer plug-in hybrids, focusing on Southern and Eastern European markets where potential buyers hesitate to purchase fully electric vehicles but might opt for plug-in models. BYD plans to bring two premium brands to Europe: Denza, aiming at German premium models, will start sales this year, followed by Yangwang, a luxury brand manufacturing larger SUVs to compete with Land Rover and Mercedes-Benz, as well as sports cars. The best-selling BYD model in Europe last year was the compact electric SUV Atto 3 (13,727 sales), followed by the large SUV Seal U (11,721), available as both fully electric and plug-in hybrid, and the compact electric hatchback Dolphin (11,452). Despite its global expansion, BYD still heavily relies on the Chinese market, where sales increased by 41% to 4.27 million, making it the third-largest brand worldwide after Toyota and Volkswagen. Of this total, 417,000 units were sold outside China, including in Europe. BYD is now the sixth-largest global automotive group.