The Chinese car manufacturer BYD is building three new factories in Brazil: one for processing lithium for batteries.
According to an announcement by the state of Bahia in the northeast of the South American country, the total investment is about R$3 billion (US$580 million).
Two factories will produce chassis for buses, trucks, and cars, and the third will process lithium and iron phosphate.
According to a statement from the governor of Bahia, these materials will be used in batteries and exported to China.
Construction is scheduled to begin in June 2023, and the first two factories are expected to be operational in October 2024, including the chemical plant and the bus and truck plant, whose production is destined for the northeastern Brazilian market.
According to the Chinese company’s calculations, the third factory, intended for chassis production, will be put into operation in January 2025.
Under the agreement, the Bahia government will provide BYD with tax incentives until December 2032, while the company is committed to hiring local contractors and suppliers.
BYD has three factories in Brazil, the first of which, a bus chassis assembly plant, was inaugurated in Campinas, São Paulo state, in 2016.
In 2017, the company opened a photovoltaic module factory in Campinas, and in 2020, it began operating its first battery factory in Manaus, the capital of Amazonas.
With information from Latina Press