As BYD continues its dominant global expansion, the EV maker’s latest target is a stone’s throw from the US. BYD is looking to establish an EV plant in Mexico as an “export hub” for the US.
After slipping past Tesla in EV sales in the last three months of the year, BYD became the top-selling EV maker globally.
BYD is now among the top ten global automakers for the first time. After dominating its home market of China, the company is expanding overseas. The automaker’s exports surged last year, with 242,765 units delivered across 70 countries.
With low-cost, functional electric cars like the Dolphin, Atto 3, and Seal, BYD is gaining market share in key overseas markets.
It’s already a leader in Japan, Thailand, Brazil, and others. The company has also recently launched new models in Mexico, Australia, India, and Europe.
As BYD looks to expand its brand globally, it is opening new overseas plants and ramping up exports.
BYD began construction on its plant in Thailand last March after delivering its 10,000th Atto 3 in the country. The plant will begin building EVs and hybrids this year. Once fully running, it will have about 150,000 units of annual output capacity for Thailand and exports.
BYD Atto 3 (Source: BYD Japan)
In Latin America, BYD is investing $605 million (3 billion reals) to build a facility in Brazil. Now, it looks like BYD is pushing for an EV plant in Mexico as it inches closer to the US.
BYD is considering building an EV plant in Mexico
The head of BYD Mexico, Zhou Zou, told Nikkeithat BYD is considering building a plant in the country.
Overseas production is critical, and Mexico is a crucial market with significant potential, according to Zou. The move comes as BYD looks to build an export hub to the US and overseas markets.
BYD Atto 3 production (Source: BYD)
Zou didn’t mention where BYD is looking to build, but Nuevo Leon and the Bajio region are likely candidates.
One of the biggest draws for BYD is lowering export costs into the US. The US-Mexico-Canada Agreement requires at least 75% of vehicle parts to be made in one of the three regions to receive potential tariff benefits.
The US also passed the Inflation Reduction Act, which requires EVs to be assembled in the US with strict battery sourcing requirements to gain a potential $7,500 tax credit.
Starting this year, EVs must be free of battery components manufactured by a “foreign entity of concern,” including China.
BYD Dolphin (left) and Atto 3 (right) Source: BYD
Mexico is becoming a hot spot for EV manufacturing. Kia announced plans to build EVs in Nuevo Leon. BMW and Stellantis also confirmed plans to produce EVs in the country last year.
Tesla is planning to build a gigafactory in Nuevo Leon. The Nuevo Leon secretary of economy, Iván Rivas, said Tesla had all the permits to begin construction in December.
BYD SEAL (Source: BYD)
Incentives, like water and roads around the factory site (in addition to a payroll tax reduction), are valued at around 2,627 million pesos (~$153 million).
Mexico is drawing significant manufacturing interest with 170 nearshoring investments totaling $74 billion.
Electrek’s Take
BYD is releasing new models while expanding overseas at a record pace. The automaker continues gaining market share in key regions.
For example, after launching in Japan just last year, BYD already accounts for 20% of the country’s EV imports. And Japan is not known for importing vehicles. Domestic automakers like Toyota dominate sales, while imports are typically luxury like BMW, Audi, and Mercedes-Benz.
BYD is expected to enter South Korea within the first half of the year to take on Hyundai and Kia on their home turf.
Earlier today, Electrek posted about how BYD was launching its cheapest EV in South America. The BYD Dolphin Mini (Seagull in China) will start at $20,100 (99,800 reals) in Brazil.
With EVs in new segments like luxury (check out the Yangwang U7 electric sports car), mid-size SUVs (the Song L and Sea Lion 07), and entry-level (Dolphin Mini/ Seagull), BYD looks to build on its momentum in 2024.
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The Suncor Energy Refinery is seen during extreme cold weather in Edmonton, AB, Canada, on Feb. 3, 2025.
Artur Widak | Nurphoto | Getty Images
HOUSTON — The deeply integrated North American oil and gas market stands at crossroads, with Canada’s largest oil producer warning that it will diversify its exports away from the United States if President Donald Trump‘s tariff threats do not end.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on Wednesday presented two possible futures for the continent. In one, Canada and the U.S. reach an agreement to create “Fortress North America,” with new pipeline capacity built to support 2 million barrels per day in additional exports to the U.S. market, Smith said at the CERAWeek energy conference.
This will support Trump’s “energy dominance” agenda, Smith said, allowing the U.S. to increase its exports to the global market by backfilling those barrels with imported oil from a neighbor and close ally. It will maintain low consumer prices in the U.S., she said, which is also part of the agenda Trump campaigned on.
Alberta wants to supply the U.S. with the energy it needs to win the race against China to achieve dominance in artificial intelligence, Smith said. “I don’t think any of us want to see a communist, totalitarian regime become a world, global leader in AI,” the premier said.
In the other future, Trump continues to wage his trade war against Canada and Alberta starts looking for oil and gas customers beyond the U.S., Smith said.
Canada is the fourth largest oil producer in the world and Alberta is the country’s biggest producer. Some 97% of the country’s 4 million bpd of oil exports went to the U.S. in 2023 with several European nations and Hong Kong taking the remainder, according to Canada’s energy regulator. Alberta supplied 87% of the oil exported from Canada to the U.S. in 2023.
“There are at least six or seven projects that are emerging in Canada in the event we’re not able to come to a partnership agreement with the U.S.,” Smith said.
The uncertainty caused by Trump’s tariff threats has already forced Alberta to start “looking at more opportunities to get more barrels off our borders besides the United States,” provincial energy minister Brian Jean said Tuesday.
Alberta is in active discussions with South Korea, Japan and European nations about shipping oil exports to those countries, the energy minister said. “The truth is we’re looking in every direction right now except the United States in relation to our priorities,” Jean said.
Canada looks to Europe, Asia
Trump’s tariffs have roiled financial markets and caused confusion among investors over the past week. The president on Wednesday imposed 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada. He has paused until April 2 penalties on Canadian oil and gas as well as duties on other goods that are compliant with the trade agreement that governs North America.
The Trump administration has not provided clarity on how much of Canada’s energy exports to the U.S. conform to the trade agreement. Oil and gas that is not compliant would face a 10% tariff. U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright declined to provide details when asked Monday by CNBC.
Smith said Wednesday that Canadian oil producers are busy filling out paperwork to ensure that their exports to the U.S. are compliant.
“There was a bit of a paperwork issue that our companies had,” Smith said. “There was no reason to register, and so now there is. I would imagine that they’ve all called their lawyers and they’re in compliance. I wouldn’t expect very much of our oil and gas is tariffed at all.”
But it is unclear whether Trump will proceed with tariffs when his pause expires on April 2. Wright said Monday a deal with Canada that avoids tariffs on oil, gas and other energy is “certainly is possible” but “it’s too early to say.”
“We can get to no tariffs or very low tariffs but it’s got to be reciprocal,” Wright said in an interview with CNBC’s Brian Sullivan.
It will take time for Alberta to pivot to markets beyond the U.S. if the tariffs do go into effect. Nearly all the pipelines in Canada run south to the U.S. Canada only has one pipeline stretching from Alberta to the country’s West Coast in British Columbia, providing access to Asian markets. There are no pipelines that run from Alberta to the country’s East Coast.
Smith said Canada is looking at three different pipeline proposals to its West Coast, at least one pipeline into the Northwest Territories, one into Manitoba, one to the Hudson Bay, and one into Eastern Canada.
“Those are conversations we were not having three months ago,” Jean said of the pipelines. But it took 12 years for Canada to expand its Trans Mountain Pipeline that connects to the country’s West Coast.
Alberta is not interested in taking a page from Ontario’s playbook, Jean said Tuesday. Premier Doug Ford imposed a 25% surcharge on electricity exported to the U.S. in response to Trump’s tariffs. He later suspended the penalty after the U.S. agreed to resume talks.
“We don’t believe that that this is the right way to do it,” Jean said of Alberta’s position. “We want to deescalate the situation.”
Canada has presented the U.S. with several options, the Alberta energy minister said. Jean declined to provide specifics, but he said the Trump administration needs a strong strategic petroleum reserve to achieve its goal of energy dominance.
“It also means that they have to be able to continue to get a good steady supply of product from Canada,” he said.
If the tariffs go do into effect, they will hurt both Canadians and Americans, particularly people who cannot afford a price increase, he said. The price hike will be split “fairly evenly” between U.S. customers and producers in Canada, he said.
“It’s going to be felt by all parties and frankly there’s many people right now […] that can’t afford it,” he said. “We need to think about those people because they’re the less fortunate that truly have no other choice but to buy fuel.”
Jean took a swipe at Trump’s repeated calls for Canada to become the 51st state.
“As long as we’re in charge, we don’t mind,” Jean said. “But the truth is the Republicans would never be elected again.”
Toyota’s first electric SUV is getting a major overhaul. The new bZ4X now has a bigger battery for more range, faster charging, dedicated EV features, a stylish facelift, and much more. Here’s our first look at the new Toyota bZ4X.
Toyota unveils new bZ4X with significant improvements
The bZ4X launched in 2022 as Toyota’s first fully electric SUV. Although it was expected to rival the Tesla Model Y and other top-selling electric SUVs, the bZ4X failed to live up to the task.
“I think it’s fair to say that we experienced a few bumps in the road during the launch,” Toyota’s chief branding officer, Simon Humphries, said during the company’s premiere event in Brussels this week.
Toyota listened to feedback from drivers, retailers, and journalists who experienced the bZ4X and delivered with the upgraded model.
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The new electric SUV has more driving range, up to twice as fast charging, and double the towing capacity. But, that’s not all. The bZ4X has been updated inside and out. The interior is completely redesigned with a new 14″ infotainment and instrument display panel.
Toyota’s new bZ4X AWD model (Source: Toyota)
Toyota finally added a battery pre-conditioning feature as standard. For the first time, Toyota said the bZ4X can now fast charge in around 30 minutes in cold weather. Maximum DC charging power is still 150 kW.
A new route planning function that automatically selects the best charging station is also included. Toyota said the feature is available through an OTA update for current bZ4X drivers.
The new bZ4X has two battery options, 57.7kWh and 73.1 kWh. The smaller battery will be available exclusively in FWD while the larger battery has FWD and AWD configurations.
With up to 338 hp (252 kW), the upgraded AWD model is one of the most powerful Toyota vehicles in Europe. Its towing capacity has doubled to 1,500 kg.
Combined with an upgraded eAxle, the new long-range bZ4X has a WLTP driving range of up to 573 km (356 miles). That’s a significant improvement from the outgoing model’s range of up to 516 km (320 miles).
Although US specs have yet to be revealed, the 2025 bZ4X is rated with up to 252 miles on the EPA rating scale. When it arrives in the US, you can expect to see upwards of around 270 to 280 miles.
Toyota will launch the updated bZ4X in Europe later this year, one of three new EVs arriving by the end of 2025. The smaller Toyota C-HR+ and Urban Cruiser electric SUVs will join the updated model in Toyota’s growing European EV lineup.
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A man set fire to three Tesla chargers at a charging station in a South Carolina parking lot, but karma got him back quickly as he also set his clothes on fire.
Tesla has been under attack recently due to its CEO, Elon Musk, enraging a large part of the popular through his involvement with the Trump administration and his behavior on social media.
Those attacks are, for the most part, legal protests at Tesla stores and calls to boycott the brand, but we have also seen some illegal actions, like vandalizing cars, stores, and charging stations, from some more extremist individuals and groups.
In a new example, North Charleston Police is looking for a suspect who burned 3 Tesla Superchargers last Friday.
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They are looking for “a White man in a grey jacket/hoodie with a black face mask”. The suspect spray painted “F*** Trump, long live Ukraine” next to the charging station.
He reportedly used homemade Molotov cocktails out of beer bottles to burn the chargers.
The police report mentions that a witness saw that the suspect set himself on fire during the arson:
“Witnesses advised that the suspect had accidentally caught their own back on fire while throwing the devices.”
The firefighters quickly responded and extinguished the fire, but the three Supercharger stalls affected had to shut down.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms is leading the investigation.
Yesterday, President Trump said that he wants to label Tesla vandals as “domestic terrorists.”
Electrek’s Take
As we have often mentioned in the last few weeks, we sympathize with the people peacefully protesting and boycotting Tesla, but we condemn any violence, including vandalism.
The protests and boycotts are much more efficient in affecting Tesla than setting yourself on fire to shut down a few charging stalls for a few days at worst.
Everyone getting involved in this is actually eroding the credibility of the “Tesla Takedown” movement.
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