BYD is ‘just getting started’ in Europe with plans to triple its EV market share
China’s BYD will challenge automakers in Europe with plans to triple its share in the EV market by 2025. After dominating its home market, BYD is expanding its brand overseas.
BYD plans to expand EV market share in Europe
BYD began selling vehicles in Europe in 2021, starting in Norway. Last year, the company sold 15,644 electric cars in the region. According to global data collection firm DataForce, that would give it a 1.1% share of Europe’s EV market.
However, the company is “just getting started” in the region, says Europe CEO Michael Shu, and expects to ramp up sales quickly.
In a new interview with Automotive News Europe, Shu said BYD is discovering “how Europeans respond” to the brand’s tech, products, and services. Europe is much different from other key auto markets like China or the US, with several legislations and languages.
Although Shu said increasing sales will take time, it expects to gain EV market share in Europe this year.
BYD aims for a 5% share of EV sales in Europe, even before production begins in Hungary. Shu confirmed the plant will start producing vehicles before 2026. The facility will build electric cars with battery packs built in Hungary.
EVs built in Europe for Europe
BYD’s Europe leader said once production begins in Europe, “we will be closer to customers, offering faster deliveries, and people will trust us more.” Shu explained, “It will be Europe for Europe.”
The Hungary plant will be able to build 150,000 vehicles a year with the ability to double output to 300,000 eventually.
Shu said BYD’s “product is premium, our price is mainstream, so we call this affordable premium.” BYD showcased luxury models like the Yangwang U8 off-roader at the Geneva Auto Show, which Shu said the company is “testing the market reaction.”
BYD’s next-gen EVs and PHEVs are set to hit the European market, starting with the Seal U this year.
The BYD Seal U will rival Volkswagen’s ID.4 with up to 310 mi (500 km) WLTP range and quick charge (30% to 80%) in 26 minutes. Despite just adding a “U” to the name, the electric SUV has little in common with the current Seal EV sedan as it’s designed specifically for Europe on a new platform.
BYD’s Atto 3 was its best-seller by far in Europe last year, with 12,363 models sold. The BYD Dolphin was second with 1,079, followed by the Tang (1,055), Han (849), Seal (284), and Seal U (11).
Electrek’s Take
Although BYD has not participated in Europe’s EV price war (yet), the automaker has started its own “liberation battle” against gas-powered vehicles.
BYD has slashed prices over the past few months, introducing drastically lower-priced versions of its best-selling models.
The Atto 3 (Yuan Plus) now starts at $16,644 (119,800 yuan) in China. BYD revealed its new Dolphin EV Honor Edition, starting at $13,900 (99,800 yuan). It’s cheapest EV, the Seagull (Dolphin Mini) is even more affordable with an Honor Edition, starting at $9,700 (69,800 yuan).
A new report claims BYD is working on its next-gen 4.0 platform that will lower costs further, promoting even cheaper electric cars.
BYD’s main goal of the “liberation battle,” is to take market share from gas-powered cars while driving EV adoption.
Contrary to many reports, BYD sees Tesla as an industry peer. Although they compete in some markets, “We are two very different animals,” Shu explained.
The company’s first cargo transport ship, BYD Explorer No.1 landed in Germany last month with around 3,000 vehicles ready to roll out across Europe as it looks to expand in the region.
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British Columbia got its first 400 kW DC fast charger last week at Canadian C-store chain On The Run, but that’s not the good part. As part of a limited time offer, these chargers are FREE!
The Canadian convenience store chain just took the wraps off its new, ABB-developed, 400 kW chargers earlier this month, but they’re already planning to bring the ultra-fast 400 kW dispensers to at least four more locations in BC this spring, and have them online just in time for the summer road trip season – something On The Run hopes its customers will appreciate.
“The A400 charger delivers an enhanced customer experience, with reliability and performance from a 32-inch screen to higher power charging sessions and power sharing,” reads the company’s official announcement, via LinkedIn. “Download the Journie Rewards app to start the charge – free for a limited time.”
On The Run’s new 400 kW ABB DC fast chargers are compatible with CCS and CHAdeMO plugs, and can accommodate Tesla and other NACS-equipped vehicles with an adapter. That said, the company seems to imply that Tesla drivers in particular will have a maximum charging speed of “just” 50 kW, which feel hilarious (given the current state of affairs between Tesla and the Canadian government), but probably isn’t.
In addition to the ABB A400 400 kW units shown here, On The Run locations also employ the ABB Terra 184 dispensers rated at 180 kW. On The Run plans similar deployments at the four BC locations mentioned above, as well as two more each in Quebec and Ontario slated to go live towards the end of this year.
Electrek’s Take
Tesla’s controversial CEO Elon Musk once mocked 350 kW charging speed as being “for a child’s toy,” despite the fact that, nearly nine years later, his own cars and Superchargers can barely make it to 325 kW while others have sailed right on past. I made fun of that fact on the Quick Charge episode shown, above – and, while I do think it’s funny and relevant, the much more relevant piece of news here is that companies like BP Pulse, Revel, and Wallbox are actively deploying 400 kW solutions, today (while others hit the same mark as far back as 2017).
It’s just a fact: Tesla has fallen way behind.
SOURCE | IMAGES: On The Run, via Electric Autonomy.
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Terawatt Infrastructure‘s first medium- and heavy-duty electric charging truck stop in California is now online, in Rancho Dominguez.
Located 12 miles north of the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, the private Rancho Dominguez site, which is shared among multiple fleets, will support electric trucking fleet operations in and out of the largest container ports in the US.
First customers include Dreaded Trucking, Hight Logistics, PepsiCo, Quick Container Drayage, Southern Counties Express, Tradelink Transport, and WestCoast Trucking & Warehousing.
Terawatt’s electric charging truck stop features 20 pull-through and bobtail DC fast charging stalls with a capacity of 7 megawatts (MW), enabling charging for up to 125 trucks per day using a simple reservations system. Terawatt’s site features a proprietary charge management system, in-house technicians, 24/7 customer service, and onsite parts management.
“This launch underscores growing collaboration between enterprises, shippers, carriers, and charging infrastructure providers to advance sustainable technologies across logistics and transportation operations, especially in the medium and heavy-duty sectors,” said Neha Palmer, CEO and cofounder of Terawatt. Palmer added that the company will bring another charging site online in Rialto, California, in June.
Terawatt joined some of the world’s largest shippers and carriers in September 2024 to launch the I-10 Consortium heavy-duty EV operations pilot, the “first-ever US over-the-road electrified corridor.” Terawatt is providing charging infrastructure, including software, operations, and maintenance support at six of its owned charging hubs along the I-10 corridor.
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In its most aggressive attack against offshore wind yet, the Trump administration halted the $5 billion Empire Wind 1, already under construction off New York’s coast.
Norwegian developer Equinor announced yesterday that it received notice from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) ordering Empire Wind 1 to halt all activities on the outer continental shelf until BOEM has completed its review. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum posted this tweet yesterday:
Burgum gave no indication of what insufficiencies there were in the approval process for the fully permitted offshore wind project, despite Trump’s recent declaration of a national energy emergency that speeds up permitting processes.
The commercial lease for the 810-megawatt (MW) Empire Wind 1’s federal offshore wind area was signed in March 2017 during the first Trump administration. It was approved by the Biden administration in November 2023 and began construction in 2024.
The project is being developed under contract with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). Empire Wind 1, which was due to come online in 2027, has the potential to power 500,000 New York homes.
“Halting construction of fully permitted energy projects is the literal opposite of an energy abundance agenda,” said American Clean Power Association CEO Jason Grumet in a statement. “We encourage the administration to quickly address perceived inadequacies in the prior permit approvals so that this project can complete construction and bring much-needed power to the grid.”
As Electrek reported, Equinor secured $3 billion to finance Empire Wind 1 in January. The total amount drawn under the project finance term loan facility as of March 31 was around $1.5 billion.
As of March 31, Empire Wind has a gross book value of around $2.5 billion, including South Brooklyn Marine Terminal (pictured above), which was expected to become the US’s largest dedicated port facility for offshore wind.
In response to BOEM’s stop work order, New York Governor Kathy Hochul issued the following statement:
Every single day, I’m working to make energy more affordable, reliable and abundant in New York and the federal government should be supporting those efforts rather than undermining them. Empire Wind 1 is already employing hundreds of New Yorkers, including 1,000 good-paying union jobs as part of a growing sector that has already spurred significant economic development and private investment throughout the state and beyond.
As Governor, I will not allow this federal overreach to stand. I will fight this every step of the way to protect union jobs, affordable energy and New York’s economic future.
Equinor says it’s considering appealing BOEM’s order.
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