Shu also announced that BYD will launch a low-cost electric car based on its Chinese Seagull model on the European market, which should be sold for less than 20,000 euros (roughly half a million CZK). The Seagull is sold in China for less than 10,000 euros (roughly 250,000 CZK).
Electric cars are on average about 30 percent more expensive than comparable internal combustion engine models, undermining demand for electric cars. Therefore, traditional European car companies are now working hard to develop more affordable models of electric cars, writes the Reuters agency.
At the end of last year, BYD announced that it would build its first European passenger car factory in Hungary. She added that the factory in the city of Szeged (Segedín) should create thousands of new jobs. BYD already operates a factory in Hungary in the town of Komárom near the Slovak border, which produces buses with an electric drive.
For European car companies, for example the German concern Volkswagen, the new BYD factory in Hungary means the prospect of another strong competitor on the European electric car market.
Under the government of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, Hungary has become an important trade and investment partner for China. According to Reuters, this contrasts with the relations of some other European Union member states with China.
Today, according to the FT, Shu confirmed that the new factory in Hungary will produce electric cars and hybrid cars that allow the battery to be recharged from the mains. “We have cutting-edge technology and a very strong development plan,” said the manager. “We believe that by 2030 we could take a leading position (in the European electric car market),” he added.
Available Chinese electric cars are twice as expensive in Europe
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BYD will exhibit the Yangwang U8 luxury SUV in Geneva, it has 1184 horses and can swim
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