BYD electric cars to be on sale in Australia from 2022
A major deal has been signed between Chinese auto giant BYD and electric transport company Nexport that will see BYD electric cars on sale in Australia from 2022.
The Driven first broke the story of the potential deal with BYD in 2020, noting there would be four models brought in via a direct-to-consumer import model that would bypass traditional dealership auto sales.
With a limited range of electric vehicles available locally, the introduction of the BYD range would “dramatically broaden the menu,” The Driven editor Giles Parkinson noted.
A number of BYD vehicles are already on Australian roads operating as a fleet of “zero emissions and zero contact” electric taxis under Nexport sister company eTaxiCoon the Northern Beaches of Sydney.
Another of these vehicles – a BYD Han – arrived in January for evaluation purposes, with Nexport CEO Luke Todd taking one for a spin on a private road.
The Han will be joined by a plug-in hybrid crossover called the BYD Song, the BYD Qin compact sedan (pronounced Chin), and the premium BYD Tang.
Nexport’s deal with BYD is the first such agreement the Chinese company has entered into globally and represents a potential major shift in how the local market deals with the lack of electric cars on Australian roads.
By the end of 2021 it is expected there will be approximately 30 electric cars available on the new car market, and there are a number of “bulk buy” and “grey import” programs in operation that can help Australians drivers access electric car models not available locally.
In a market where less than 1% of new car sales are electric, carmakers in Australia have been reticent about introducing more models while a lack of supportive government policy persists.
Todd says that by circumventing the dealership model, the BYD vehicles will be up to 30% cheaper.
In October Todd told Parkinson that drivers can expect prices to range from $60,000 up to 100,000 for the top-end Tang.
Tesla is also now shipping its Model 3, which is also equipped with an LFP battery, from China.
It started sourcing Chinese batter maker CATL’s LFP packs in 2020 as part of an effort to localise parts and reduce battery costs.
This in part enabled it to drop the price of the Model 3 in China to qualify for state subsidies.
It was thought that Tesla might reduce the price of the Model 3 in Australia also but this has not yet eventuated, having already dropped by the price by $7,000 to a $66,900 base price in late 2020.
One of China's biggest electric vehicle companies signs right-hand drive distribution agreement with Australian-owned company.
One of China's largest electric vehicle companies BYD has signed an agreement to sell cars in Australia, with the first cars due to arrive next year.
BYD has been experimenting in Australia with a handful of cars since 2015 – it has had five electric taxis on Sydney's roads for the past five years.
A BYD SUV, sedan and van have also been spotted in Sydney in the past six months.
Initially, the Australian distributor, Nexport, plans to sell BYD vehicles online only; for now it says there are no plans to establish a dealer showroom network.
Pricing is expected to be revealed later this year.
The agreement sees Nexport become the brand's right-hand drive market distributor within the Asia-Pacific region.
The arrangement marks the first third-party agreement of this kind that BYD has entered into globally.
Speaking exclusively to CarAdvice, Nexport CEO Luke Todd claims its business strategy "shakes up the Australian dealership model" and will "deliver high quality electric vehicles from the manufacturer direct to the customer".
"The dealership network model is broken when it comes to electric vehicles.
Under our model, we will be reducing the price to consumers by as much as 30 per cent," said Todd.
"A heavy reliance on after sales and convoluted importation processes adds unnecessary cost.
By revamping these processes, we're targeting a sale price that's at parity with internal combustion vehicles."
While Nexport has already imported current-generation BYD electric vehicles into Australia, they are not the final products Australians will be purchasing.
Nexport plans to launch a future range of BYD products that have yet to be revealed globally.
"All next generation BYD products will feature the brand's proprietary 'Blade Battery' technology, and are unlike any other offerings currently in Australia" added Todd.
CarAdvice understands the first BYD cars destined for Australia will be revealed at the Shanghai Auto Show on 21 April 2021.
We also expect that the Australian line-up will consist of only fully-electric offerings, and include a medium-sized SUV, and medium-sized sports sedan – similar to the BYD Han (pictured above) that's currently in Australia on promotional duty.
Nexport plans to pre-launch the BYD brand in Australia mid-way through this year, and begin accepting pre-orders at that time
It also has plans to open up a customer experience centre in the Sydney CBD, to build interest before first customer deliveries commence in the first half of 2022.
Last year, BYD reportedly sold 461,399 vehicles globally.
Of that figure, 130,970 were fully-electric vehicles, and 48,084 plug-in hybrids with internal combustion assistance.
The brand hired former Audi head designer Wolfgang Egger as its chief designer, and has recently opened a multi-billion dollar electric vehicle R&D centre in Shenzhen, China.
Nexport is a subsidiary of Australian-owned renewable energy investment firm TrueGreen.
The brand has recently announced a AU$700 million plan to manufacture zero-emissions buses in the Southern Highlands district of New South Wales.
