The world’s largest electric vehicle maker, BYD, is planning to launch a new factory in Vietnam. Sources said that the plant would start making car parts for the company by mid-year, with the investment to build it exceeding $250 million.
The move would reduce China-based BYD’s reliance on its home country, and deepen its supply chain in Southeast Asia as part of a global expansion. The carmaker has also been expanding elsewhere in Asia, including Singapore, Japan, and Europe.
The bid follows a wider manufacturing trend to reduce exposure to China, amid trade tensions with the United States and production delays under Beijing’s previous COVID-19 lockdowns.
BYD outsold rival Tesla in electric vehicles by more than two to one in China in 2022.
The company declined to comment on the Vietnam plant leak.