BYD avoids EU tariffs by exporting EVs from Thailand plant
China’s BYD has started shipping Thai-made vehicles to Europe for the first time. Over 900 units of BYD Dolphin set sail to Germany, Belgium and the UK, the company announced Monday.
The first batch of Dolphins left Thailand aboard BYD’s own vessel BYD Zhengzhou. This is the first time Zhengzhou has sailed from Thailand to Europe.
The Rayong-based CKD factory, which began operations in July 2024, is BYD’s first fully-owned passenger car plant outside of China. With an annual production capacity of 150,000 vehicles, the site serves both the local Thai market and overseas exports.
CKD (Completely Knocked Down) refers to a method where a vehicle is shipped in parts and assembled in the destination country. Automakers use CKD kits to reduce import tariffs and support local manufacturing.
In July, the Thai plant reached the 90,000 delivery milestone, a year after it went into operation.
“Following the delivery of our 90,000th NEV in July, we are once again achieving a breakthrough. The export of Thai-made Dolphin models to Europe for the first time not only represents another step forward in BYD’s globalisation strategy, but also underscores Thailand’s vital role in the global EV supply chain,” said Ke Yubin, general manager of BYD Thailand.
China-made EVs face anti-subsidy tariffs imposed by the European Union last year. As BYD was cooperating with the investigation, they faced a lower additional tariff of 20.7% on top of the existing 10% customs duty.
BYD sold 545,003 EVs overseas in the first seven months of the year (January – July). That is 133.5% up from the same period last year.
In total, BYD sold 2,458,914 passenger vehicles globally in the first seven months of the year, up 26.2% from the same period last year, according to data monitored by China EV DataTracker. However, their growth is slowing down as in July, the company sold 341,030 passenger vehicles, only 0.1% up year-over-year and the lowest YoY growth in 1.5 years.
