BYD's Billion-Dollar India EV Factory Dream In Tatters As Govt. Says No Deal

Chinese EV firm Build Your Dreams, one of the largest manufacturers of electric vehicles in the world, has seen its plans for a production plant in India go up in smoke due to a direct rejection from the Government of India.

BYD along with its Indian partner, Hyderabad-based Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd had recently submitted plans to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) for a production facility with a joint investment outlay of $1 billion (around Rs 82 billion).

The DPITT had asked other departments for their opinions on the investment proposal by BYD. During these discussions, security concerns regarding Chinese investments in India were raised, which resulted in the rejection of BYD's production facility proposal.

This is due to the Government of India's recent changes to foreign direct investment (FDI) policies. The government had made it mandatory that firms from countries sharing a land border - China, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Bhutan, Nepal, Myanmar and Afghanistan - needed to get approval to make investments in India.

The planned facility which was to be situated in the state of Telangana would have been used to produce BYD's cars and batteries in India. This would be used to manufacture BYDs lineup of electric cars which includes everything from hatchbacks to luxury cars.

BYD currently sells the Atto3 SUV and E6 MPV (B2B only) in India. The firm showcased the Seal EV sedan at Auto Expo 2023. The BYD Seal is expected to go on sale in India later this year.

Thoughts About The Government's Rejection Of BYD's Billion-Dollar EV Factory Proposal

The Government of India's rejection of BYD and Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd's proposal for a manufacturing facility in Telangana with a billion-dollar investment outlay comes as no surprise considering our nation's current issue with China. However, it leaves us wondering if BYD will go down the Great Wall route and leave India. Let's hope that isn't the case and BYD finds another way to keep its Indian operations in top gear.

Source: The Economic Times