Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD laid the foundation stone for a new factory in the Northeast of Brazil, in an event attended by Vice President Geraldo Alckmin — who is also the development, industry, and trade minister — and Chief of Staff Rui Costa. BYD is the world’s biggest electric vehicle manufacturer and will build three manufacturing units in the country.
The facility in question is a decommissioned Ford factory in the city of Camaçari, in Bahia state. The American multinational wound up operations at the plant in January 2021, laying off 4,000 workers in the process. Claiming “significant losses” of profits in the years prior, Ford simultaneously announced the closure of its factories in Taubaté, in São Paulo state, and Horizonte, in Ceará — putting an end to all its operations in Brazil.
Production at the new factories is expected to begin at the end of next year, manufacturing an estimated 150,000 vehicles a year during its first phase of implementation.
One factory will be dedicated to the production of electric buses and lorries, another will be for electric and hybrid vehicles, while the third will be used to process inputs such as lithium and iron phosphate, to be exported abroad.
The government says the company’s arrival in Bahia will directly create 5,000 jobs. Building the three factories will require a reported investment of BRL 3 billion (USD 580 million) from BYD. In return, the Bahia state government will grant the Chinese company tax breaks for the next ten years.
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