BYD, the Chinese giant and manufacturer of electric vehicles, continues its expansion in Europe. This summer, the automotive company has sold hundreds of electric buses to different European countries and cities, from Norway, Finland to London, Amsterdam, Madrid or Turin. Currently, BYD is already present in the 100 main towns of the continent.
This Chinese company began in 1995 manufacturing rechargeable electric batteries, and six years later, it began operating in the automotive sector under the name BYD Auto. Today it has become one of the world's leading companies in the electric vehicle sector and one of the largest manufacturers of vehicles of this type in the world.
In the first seven months of 2021, the company has announced a sales volume of 205,000 electric vehicles worldwide. In this sense, the Chinese giant's strategy in Europe involves public transport. Although BYD also has electric cars of different ranges and prices, which could compete with Tesla in Europe, its cars go somewhat unnoticed. However, its buses are easily visible in any capital of Europe.
Recently the EMT, the municipal transport company of Madrid, once again acquired a fleet of 12-meter BYD electric buses, the company's most demanded model in Europe, which are added to those previously purchased and form a total fleet of 65 electric vehicles in the Spanish capital. In addition, in Spain, the city of Santander also acquired two new electric buses this summer.
According to the Chinese manufacturer, other southern European countries such as Portugal, which already has vehicles from this company among its public transport fleets, bought five BYD electric buses in July that will be delivered by the end of 2021. And the city of Turin in Italy placed the most significant order with 50 electric buses for the city's main public transport operator, Gruppo Torinese Trasporti.
But not only southern Europe is betting on BYD's electric public transport. The Finnish capital, Helsinki, through Nobina, the public transport company in the Nordic countries, acquired a fleet of 76 BYD eBuses, in addition to the 43 units delivered in June. Ireland was also recently joining electric mobility, buying another fleet of 200 electric buses from BYD ADL, a partnership between the Chinese giant and the British company ADL.
Although in many of these countries, the electric vehicle manufacturer was already present, in countries such as Slovakia and Hungary, it launched its first buses for the first time this summer. The Chinese manufacturer has two factories in Europe, one located in Komarom (Hungary) and another in Beauvais (France).
All these investments by European national and local administrations are part of the European Union's commitment to "clean, connected and competitive" mobility by 2050. In 2018, the Commission signed a series of proposals to end greenhouse gas emissions and established that mobility was a crucial element in this regard.
According to data from the Commission itself, transport accounts for 33% of energy consumption and 64.5% of crude oil consumption in the European Union.
Adina Vălean, a member of the Transport Commission of the European Commission, has announced that new funds with a value of 30,000 million euros are planned for transport, digital, and energy projects for the period 2021-2027.
"We have adopted important legislative proposals that will help the EU reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030. The studies we support today through the Connecting Europe Facility contribute to the same goal. Moreover, they are a starting point for many projects that will help accelerate the transition to an innovative and sustainable transport network, " said Adina Vălean.
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BYD is one of the leading manufacturers of electric vehicles globally; this year, it has already sold more than 200,000 electric vehicles. The Chinese company is a global giant present in the United States, Latin America, Africa, Europe and Asia. Although it also manufactures electric cars, its successful strategy in Europe is due to its BYD eBus electric bus model, present in more than 100 European cities.
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