BYD Working On India-Specific Model As Sales in China Drop

In 2025, BYD trumped Tesla to become the highest-selling electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer in the world. The Chinese-brand is on a spree to expand its global footprint with India being forecasted as a strong market. BYD is now eyeing a “minimum target” of 24 percent growth in overseas markets this year, equating to 1.3 million vehicles, including hybrid models.

It has now come to light that BYD is developing a new EV model specific to the Indian market. This development was confirmed by Stella Li, Executive Vice President, BYD at the World Governments Summit in Dubai. Without revealing any specific detail about the upcoming EV, she added that engineers at BYD's Shenzhen headquarters are currently working on the design of this new model, although an official launch date is yet to be announced.

Domestic sales for BYD in China have dropped since an adjustment in government subsidies for electric vehicles, with January’s figures down for the fifth straight month. Hence, the company looks at India as a prospective market where EV sales are anticipated to grow as adoption of battery-powered vehicles increases. 

No BYD EV factory in India

Earlier speculation had indicated that BYD might set up a local assembly plant in India; however, Li refuted these claims. She stated that the company’s current focus is on product development and refining its market approach, rather than pursuing domestic manufacturing in the near future. 

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For now, BYD has not disclosed any information on the segment, specifications or launch schedule of its India-focused model. Additional details are expected to be revealed closer to the vehicle’s official debut. As of now, BYD sells four fully electric models in India namely eMax 7, Atto 3, Seal, and Sealion 7. All, barring the eMax 7, are brought to India as fully-imported CBUs. The eMax is locally-assembled though CKD kits.