Leading Chinese automaker BYD recently debuted the hybrid Song and the all-electric Yuan in Brazil. These two new SUVs will be offered for purchase there beginning this month, according to CnEVPost.
“We have been in Brazil for almost 10 years. We have experienced many political changes in this period, in addition to exchange rate fluctuations and inflation. But I think that in the long term, Brazil has its own advantages,” said BYD Americas President Stella Li.
Agreement with the Bahia state government
BYD and the Bahia state government signed a letter of intent in October.
As reported by Reuters, the arrangement is about establishing auto production in the unoccupied industrial area when Ford abandoned its factory outside the capital Salvador.
The Bahia state government stated that BYD would invest 3 billion reais ($550 million) in carrying out the following:
- Produce electric buses, truck chassis, electric cars, and hybrid cars at three separate plants
- process Brazilian lithium for export to China in auto batteries
Two of the facilities will start operating in 2024. Meanwhile, the third plant’s operation would be a year later than the first two.
BYD’s footprint in Brazil
BYD reportedly predicts that by 2025, electric and hybrid vehicles will account for 10% of all vehicle sales in Brazil. Apart from this, the Chinese automaker also expects that the EV market share could increase to 30% by 2030.
It is also worth noting that BYD recently revealed that it had opened its first co-built store in Brasilia with renowned Brazilian auto dealer Saga. This additional store increased the total number of BYD’s offline dealership outlets in the country to 10.
Furthermore, BYD disclosed its partnership with Santander Bank in Brazil to offer local consumers automotive financing services on October 19.
On the other hand, the Tang EV, Han EV, and D1 are just a few of the models that BYD has previously introduced in Brazil.
Considering that the automaker’s new manufacturing facility in the northeastern state of Bahia is still under development, Song Plus DM-i and Yuan Plus EV will initially be imported for Brazilian customers.
