China’s BYD Proposes $1 Bn Investment In India To Build Electric Cars, Batteries

Chinese automaker BYD has reportedly proposed to invest $1 Bn in India to manufacture electric cars and batteries in the country. 

The Chinese company has reportedly sent a proposal, in partnership with Hyderabad-based manufacturer Megha Engineering and Infrastructures, to the regulators for the same, Reuters reported.

In the long-term, BYD plans to launch a full-range of its vehicles in India, ranging from hatchbacks to luxury models.

BYD aims to produce 100,000 EVs in India annually in a few years, but it would begin with shipping vehicle parts for assembly across the country through its own supply chain. 

Besides, BYD and Megha Engineering also plan to launch charging stations in India and build research and development and training centres, the report said.

The development comes a day after it was reported that BYD’s rival Tesla is mulling moving its auto and electronics supply chain to India.

However, it remains to be seen if BYD’s proposal gets the nod from Indian regulators. India has tightened norms for Chinese investments since the clash between the armies of both the countries in 2020. This also resulted in China’s Great Wall Motor shelving its plans to invest $1 Bn in Indian

Over the last few years, India has emerged as an attractive destination for companies trying to shift a part of their production outside China to reduce their reliance on the country. A number of Apple suppliers and manufacturers have moved production to India over the last couple of years. Tech giant Google is also mulling manufacturing Pixel smartphones in India.

Besides, India is also a large and growing automotive market, making it attractive for companies like BYD. While the penetration of electric car sales in the total car sales in the country is just about 1%, this number is expected to grow in the future.