BYD, the Longbridge Dolphin, is making its way into South America! With a whopping investment of 4.5 billion, BYD is setting up a factory in Brazil, marking its first manufacturing facility outside of Asia.

China's new energy giant BYD is accelerating its global expansion. In addition to Southeast Asia and Europe, BYD is also expanding its presence in South America.

On July 4th local time, BYD and the government of Bahia, Brazil jointly announced the establishment of a large-scale production complex consisting of three factories in Camaçari City, with a total investment of 3 billion Brazilian reais (approximately 4.5 billion Chinese yuan). This complex will be BYD's first electric vehicle factory outside of Asia.

The Brazilian factory will start operation in the second half of 2024, creating 5,000 job opportunities

The Camaçari Industrial Park, where BYD's Brazilian factory is located, was originally the site of a Ford Motor car factory, which was closed by Ford Motor in 2021. BYD subsequently built a new factory here with the encouragement of the Brazilian government.

According to the announcement, among the three production units of this production complex, one will be used for the production of hybrid and pure electric vehicles, with an initial annual production capacity of 150,000 vehicles, which may reach 300,000 vehicles in the future. Another unit will be used for the production of electric buses and truck chassis, and the third unit will be used for processing lithium and iron phosphate for overseas markets. It is expected to start operation in the second half of 2024, creating over 5,000 job positions locally.

Li Ke, President of BYD Americas, said:

"This is an extremely important moment for BYD in the Americas. The new factory in Brazil will promote the popularization and accelerated development of electric vehicles in Brazil, which is a key measure to address climate change and improve people's quality of life."

In the announcement of the new factory, BYD also stated that local suppliers in Brazil will be given priority.

Li Tie, General Manager of BYD, said:

"Companies should create value and give back to society. We will establish a localized production team, carry out a series of training activities, and enhance employees' professional and technical capabilities, contributing to the local economic and social development."

From Thailand to South America, BYD's presence continues to expand

Brazil's friendly industrial policies towards China and the predictability of the government are key factors that attracted BYD to establish factories.

As early as 2015, BYD opened an electric bus chassis factory in the suburbs of São Paulo, Brazil. It later produced photovoltaic components here and lithium iron phosphate batteries in the state of Amazonas.

In April of this year, after Brazilian President Lula visited China, he signed an investment agreement worth approximately 50 billion Brazilian reais, attracting Chinese companies to establish factories in Brazil.

The Brazilian factory is BYD's first automobile factory outside of Asia. In addition to South America, BYD's expansion in Southeast Asia and Europe is also ongoing.

In March, BYD officially laid the foundation for a production factory in Rayong Province, Thailand's important automobile production and export base, with production expected to start in 2024. Last October, BYD launched its electric vehicle ATTO 3 in the Thai market for the first time. Sales began in November of the same year. As of the end of March 2023, 3,000 ATTO 3 vehicles have been registered and licensed in Thailand, accounting for nearly 10% of the country's total registrations of pure electric vehicles. According to People's Daily, when BYD's Longbridge Dolphin factory in Rayong Province started production, more than 10,000 ATTO 3 models had already been delivered in Thailand. The scene of consumers queuing to order BYD vehicles is no longer news in Thailand.

In addition, in March, Michael Shu, the President of BYD Europe, stated that BYD is seeking new factories or considering acquiring existing ones in Europe in order to establish a solid presence in the highly competitive automotive industry in the region. The first European factory may be located in Germany, France, Spain, Poland, Hungary, and other countries. The production of the first batch of cars in Europe is expected to commence in 2025.