BYD to open a new EV factory in Brazil (revamping a Ford facility). One plant will focus on chassis for e-buses and e-trucks

BYD is set to revamp a defunct Ford factory in Camaçari, Bahia, Brazil, as reported on Brazilian report. This factory closed in January 2021, causing the loss of 4,000 jobs. Chinese giant BYD plans to create three new facilities, with production expected to begin by the end of the next year, aiming for an annual output of 150,000 vehicles initially.

In late 2022, BYD announced the delivery of 100 e-bus chassis in São Paulo in early 2023. The company, with a factory in Brazil since 2015, has the capacity to produce 2,000 chassis per year. The first locally-built e-bus for Brazil was unveiled in 2021. What is worth noting, São Paulo has banned procurement of new diesel buses: 2,600 e-buses expected in operation by end 2024.

BYD builds electric vehicles factory in Brazil

As communicated by BYD itself in July, one factory will focus on chassis for electric buses and trucks, another on electric and hybrid vehicles, and the third on processing components for export, according to the media.

This venture is projected to generate 5,000 jobs in Bahia, with BYD investing approximately BRL 3 billion (USD 580 million) and receiving tax incentives from the Bahia state government over ten years. This signifies a substantial step for both BYD and the Brazilian electric vehicle market.

electrive.com observes that “For BYD, the facilities in Bahia are not the first production sites in Brazil. The company already manufactures electric bus chassis in Campinas in the Brazilian state of São Paulo and operates a lithium iron phosphate battery assembly plant in Manaus, the capital of the Brazilian state of Amazonas. BYD is also reportedly planning to build a battery materials factory in Chile”.

Stella Li, Executive Vice President of BYD and CEO of BYD Americas. “These new factories in Bahia will bring innovation and the highest standards in technology, this will allow the introduction and acceleration of electromobility in the country, a key movement to combat climate change and really improve people’s quality of life.”