China’s BYD to build electric vehicle plant in Indonesia

BYD is to invest $1.3bn in an electric vehicle factory in Indonesia, after the Chinese carmaker unveiled three new battery models for sale with the aim of becoming Indonesia’s biggest EV brand. 

The site would be the sixth auto plant outside China planned by the Warren Buffett-backed group, following Brazil, Hungary, Mexico, Thailand and Uzbekistan, as it expands its manufacturing footprint closer to overseas markets. 

BYD, which overtook Tesla in EV sales last quarter, is also scoping Mexico for a factory location that could serve the US market, despite rising trade barriers. 

At an event in East Jakarta to launch three new models, the Indonesian government’s coordinating minister of economic affairs, Airlangga Hartarto, said the carmaker would invest $1.3bn to build a plant with a capacity of 150,000 vehicles.

BYD’s Indonesia chief Eagle Zhao did not comment on the figures, but said the group would start construction of its facilities this year. 

“As part of our long-term commitment, we envision building an EV ecosystem and fostering development in Indonesia,” he added. 

BYD wants to overtake the top-selling models in the Indonesian market last year, which included the Hyundai Ioniq 5, and the Air EV from China’s Wuling Motors.

Jakarta has been trying to convince global automakers to set up manufacturing plants in the country as it aims to build an EV ecosystem on the back of its vast nickel reserves. 

The south-east Asian nation is home to the world’s largest reserves of nickel, an integral part of batteries for electric vehicles. President Joko Widodo banned exports of nickel ore in 2020 in an effort to attract metal processors, battery manufacturers and carmakers to invest in Indonesia. 

Following the export ban, billions of dollars have poured into the Indonesian nickel industry, particularly from Chinese mining groups. 

BYD, which is also one of the world’s biggest EV battery makers, is aggressively expanding overseas at a time of rising protectionism in the west against products made in China. 

China last year overtook Japan as the world’s largest exporter of cars, and BYD is among a clutch of Chinese EV and battery makers trying to build factories and secure access to mineral deposits closer to overseas consumers. 

Of BYD’s 243,000 cars exported to more than 50 countries last year, about half were sold in the Asia-Pacific region, followed by Europe, South America and Africa, according to Citigroup.

The company, over the long term, is targeting overseas sales of between 2mn and 3mn vehicles, excluding the US and European markets. This week BYD’s first EV cargo ship departed China for Europe and the company has plans to build six further vessels.