BYD Partners with A Chinese Diesel Engine Manufacturer

BYD, the world’s first automaker to cease production and sales of pure gasoline vehicles, has recently entered into a strategic partnership with Weichai Power, China’s largest diesel engine manufacturer.

The signing location for both parties is in Shenzhen, but the cooperative project will be implemented in Shandong Province. The agreement outlines plans to establish a comprehensive and strategic partnership in the field of new energy by leveraging their respective strengths. This includes joint production of power batteries in Shandong, building a research and development manufacturing base for power batteries, and promoting the industrialization of China’s new energy commercial vehicle industry.

Weichai Power, the largest diesel engine manufacturer in China, has invested 4 billion yuan ($574 million) since 2010 to develop new energy businesses, and has outlined three technological routes: pure electric, hybrid power, and hydrogen fuel cell.

BYD has recently introduced several technologies, including blade battery, DM-i hybrid, and cell-to-body battery packs to address the challenges in the field of pure electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles. These advancements have helped resolve the trade-off between performance and efficiency. In April of last year, BYD announced that it would no longer produce or sell fuel-powered cars. This decision enabled it to surpass Tesla by selling 1.86 million units last year, making it the global leader in new energy vehicle sales. In just four months this year, it sold a total of 762,400 new energy vehicles – an increase of approximately 94.3% compared to the same period last year. Its goal for new energy vehicle sales this year is over three million units.

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BYD and Weichai Power are collaborating to produce power batteries, rather than diesel engines. They have both established new energy businesses in Shandong: Weichai Power has a new energy engine base, while BYD has factories for power batteries, chips, and vehicles. These facilities serve as the industrial foundation for the strategic cooperation between the two companies in the province.