In a just-released global EV ranking, BYD Company Ltd. ranked first in sales in October – for the sixth consecutive month since May – with a total of 6,099 EV units sold. However, the October ranking represents a true watershed for the company because for the first time BYD also ranks first in accumulated sales throughout the year – with a total of 43,069 EV units sold, a 222% surge as compared to the same period last year – overcoming all American, Japanese and European leaders to date.
BYD’s outstanding performance in 2015 – in which the company climbed from the 7th position in late 2014 to the first position in just 10 months – is the result of a carefully studied and planned strategy combined with savvy market perception. After the successful launch of its first “dynastic” PHEV model – the sedan Qin – that placed the company on the passenger EV map and featured increased sales month-on-month since late 2013, BYD went on to launch yet another PHEV model, this time the streamlined SUV Tang in June 2015, as part of a complete PHEV lineup following the company’s 542 performance strategy – in which “5” means the vehicle’s power to reach 100km/h in under 5 seconds, “4” meaning four-wheel drive, and “2” for its fuel efficiency of 100km with less than 2 liters of gasoline – that has conquered the taste of consumers. Next in line are the SUVs Song and Yuan, which will most definitely add to the company’s mushrooming numbers.
The rise of EVs comes together with the rise of the Chinese Auto Industry and that of BYD Company Ltd. The company’s EV strategy is not limited to mere passenger vehicles, in spite of its outstanding performance in this category. Its 7+4 strategy epitomizes its ambitions for the future of what is called in China “new energy vehicles”, where passenger cars would be just part of a much bigger picture. The company aims at electrifying all possible means of transportation, and it has gone a long way towards accomplishing such feat: the “7” stands for major conventional vehicles, comprising bus, coach, taxi, private car, urban logistics truck, sanitation truck and construction truck (concrete mixer); and the “4” stands for specific off-road environments: warehouse, mining, airports, ports. The company’s rise in PHEVs has been as inconspicuous as its massive presence in Electrified Public Transportation worldwide. Starting in 2010, now its fully electric (BEV) buses and taxis are running in over 160 cities in 40 countries.
