Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker BYD signed a preliminary sales and purchase agreement with the municipality of Szeges in Hungary for the land that will be used for its new plant, the company announced on Wednesday, marking a step forward in BYD’s localization in Europe.  

BYD announced in December 2023 that it would build an EV manufacturing plant in Szeges, making it the first Chinese car maker to build a passenger car plant in the EU.

The plant is expected to start operation in three years, and it will focus on producing passenger cars for the European market. The construction of the plant will create thousands of local jobs and will support Hungary’s green economy transformation, said BYD.  

Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto said during the signing ceremony that BYD’s manufacturing plant was the largest and the most important investment project in Hungary’s history, which will strengthen Hungary’s economic position and foundations for long-term growth. Hungary’s central government and the local government will provide necessary support to facilitate the operation of the plant, said the minister.  

“As the world’s largest NEV enterprise, BYD is ready to bring our highly advanced technologies and automated manufacturing lines to Hungary to facilitate local EV development,” BYD Chairman Wang Chuanfu said during the signing ceremony, noting that BYD will produce localized products for European markets by collaborating with Europe to achieve the goal of global sustainable development.   

US-based Tesla Inc in January 2024 revealed its EV delivery volume in the final quarter of 2023 reached 484,500, while BYD sold about 526,400 EVs during the same period, indicating that BYD overtook Tesla to become world’s top EV producer in quarterly volume.  

China became the world’s top auto exporter in 2023 by surpassing Japan. A total of 4.91 million vehicles were shipped from China and Japan exported 4.42 million, data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers and the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association showed.

Aside from auto manufacturers, Chinese lithium-ion battery giant CATL is also exploring the European market together with Stellantis NV, a carmaker based in the Netherlands. The deal was announced on November 21, along with the signing of a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding, which means CATL will supply lithium iron phosphate battery cells and modules to power the Dutch company's electric vehicle production in Europe.