Tesla rival BYD builds its first plant in Europe

China's e-car manufacturer BYD is expanding its network of production facilities. In order to gain an even stronger foothold in the European market, the company is now building a plant in Hungary. The government is participating in the project. Experts expect a capacity of 200,000 cars per year.

The Chinese car manufacturer BYD is planning to build a plant for electric vehicles in Hungary. The Chinese Tesla competitor wants to expand beyond its home market and the plant in Hungary will be its first production site in Europe. The company, which is backed by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, said in a post on social media that it hopes the move will accelerate its entry into the European electric vehicle market and expand its global footprint. In its home market, BYD had increased sales by almost a third to 301,000 vehicles within a year in November - including hybrid models.

BYD did not provide any precise details on the investment volume or the expected start of production. However, it stated that the plant would be built in several phases and is expected to create thousands of jobs locally. The Chinese company already has plants in the USA, Brazil, Japan and India. In media reports, BYD had also been considered as a potential buyer for the Ford plant in Saarlouis, which is threatened with closure.

The experts at Bernstein assume that around 200,000 cars can be built in Hungary every year. However, a plant in Europe is important for the Tesla rival in order to be able to develop the market, the analysts wrote. "Local construction reduces logistics and customs costs - which are particularly high in the lower price segment," they said. "Even more importantly, local governments will then also support the company."

Several major projects in Hungary

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said that the BYD factory in the southern Hungarian city of Szeged was one of the largest investments in the country's history. The Hungarian government is planning to provide financial support, although the amount will not be announced until it has been approved by the EU authorities. Head of government Viktor Orban had also campaigned for the bid. According to an official Chinese website, he visited the BYD headquarters in Shenzhen, China, weeks ago and met the company's CEO Wang Chuanfu. Orban was in China in mid-October.

BYD is the largest producer of electric cars in China and the world. The company recently became the first to surpass the five million mark for e-car production. The manufacturer wants to conquer the European market. BYD initially produced batteries and entered the production of e-cars in 2003. Numerous western car manufacturers source batteries for their electric cars from BYD, including BMW, Mercedes, Audi, Tesla, Toyota and Ford.

BMW is also currently building a plant in Debrecen, Hungary, where the cars of the new class are to be produced from the middle of the decade. Several large battery factories are also being built in the Eastern European country.