BYD announces its first European EV factory in Hungary

22 December 2023

Today BYD confirmed the location of its first EV factory in Europe. This will be built in phases in Szeged, Hungary. The plant is expected to create thousands of local jobs over the next few years.

BYD says it will use advanced process equipment and automated production processes to build "a leading global manufacturing base". Aside from cars, BYD will also build batteries at the new factory.

Obviously, the point is to have EVs for the European markets made as close to the delivery point as possible. Hungary is a member of both the EU and the Schengen zone, which means the vehicles made there won't incur any tariffs when sold elsewhere in the EU. BYD is allegedly looking to make over 100,000 EVs per year in the new plant, which is expected to take two years to build.

BYD already has a bus factory in Hungary, in Komarom, and Nio has a battery swap station factory in Biatorbagy. CATL announced last year that it will build a 100 GWh battery plant in Hungary in Debrecen, and Sunwoda followed, so the country seems to be welcoming EV-related developments with open arms.

BYD's European CEO Michael Shu revealed earlier this year that the brand wants to have a 10% share of European EV sales by 2030. BYD commenced its European push in 2022 at the Paris Motor Show and is now present in 19 countries on the continent. BYD started sales in Hungary in October - the first Eastern European country where it's present.

Source 1 | Source 2