Reflecting its ever-growing and more global dimension, BYD, while awaiting the completion of the construction of two new factories in Europe (in Hungary and Turkey), recently inaugurated, in Brazil, in the presence of President Lula da Silva, its largest electric car factory outside of Asia. Although it was installed in an old Ford industrial unit in the State of Bahia, this is the largest car factory in Latin America; it required an investment of over 900 million euros; it already has a production capacity of 150,000 cars annually (which the Chinese brand intends to double very soon); and it has allowed for the creation, both directly and indirectly, of around 20,000 jobs. Nevertheless, BYD’s investment in Brazil will not stop: by 2028, it aims to produce 70% of the components it needs locally, in addition to planning the establishment of research and testing centers in Brazilian territory, in order to become, in the words of its president, Wang Chuanfu, “a 100% Brazilian brand.”
Present in the Brazilian market since 2022, having already sold over 170,000 electrified cars, BYD is currently the seventh best-selling brand in the country, and locally produces the Songo Pro, the Dolphin Mini, and the King. However, its presence in Brazil has also been surrounded by controversy, as it was investigated for suspected labor malpractice, and more recently was accused by Anfavea (the association of vehicle manufacturers in Brazil) of selling cars below production cost (“dumping”), something that the Chinese manufacturer refutes.
