Chinese EV maker BYD targets 20,000 vehicles in Mexico in 2024

MEXICO CITY Chinese electric-vehicle maker BYD said on Tuesday it will launch its cars in Mexico next year, with a senior executive pegging its sales target at up to 30,000 vehicles in 2024.

The company's country head Zhou Zou told Reuters that BYD will begin selling fully electric versions of its Tang sport utility vehicle SUV alongside its Han sedan next year.

The world's largest EV maker by sales hopes to sell 10,000 vehicles in Mexico in 2023 and between 20,000 and 30,000 vehicles in 2024, according to Zou, the firm's long-term goal is to reach around 10 per cent of the total market share.

As per Mexico's Automotive Industry Association, only 4.5 percent of cars sold in the first eight months of this year were hybrids, or around 31,000 of nearly 693,000 sold in total.

Zou stressed the company's affordability, despite the fact that BYD declined to name starting prices of its vehicles in Mexico. "We are the brand for everyone," Zou said.

In September, BYD had set pre-sale prices for its Tanga and Han models at 72,000 euros $72,500 in Europe. According to the country's statistics agency, few Mexicans make more than $10,000 a year.

BYD's Zou said that the company aimed to sell cars through 15 licensed dealers in Mexico by the end of 2023 and hit 30 by the end of 2024.

The announcement came after Mexico, a major car producer hub, tried to make EVs more affordable by cutting sales taxes and import tariffs, a move that Zou said was a positive step.

Mexico has been on track to meet its goal of turning 50 per cent of automotive production electric by the year 2030, according to officials in the country.

A General Motors executive said this month, Mexico will be more likely to reach just 15 per cent by the year 2030 if it doesn't change course.

Zou said that as U.S. states like California go fully electric, Mexico — which produces a vast amount of cars for its northern neighbors — will likely follow.