Tesla holds on to crown as world's top pure EV maker but BYD draws closer in title race

Tesla retained its title as the world's largest pure electric vehicle (EV) maker after beating sales forecasts for the April to June period but its lead over its competitors is narrowing as Chinese manufacturers launch an array of models at cheaper prices.

The Austin, Texas-based company delivered 443,956 vehicles to customers during the quarter, beating a median forecast of 439,302 units in a Bloomberg survey of analysts, edging out BYD, backed by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, which churned out 426,039 pure electric cars in the same period.

Inclusive of plug-in hybrid vehicles, BYD's production would be the world's largest. All of Tesla's production models belong to the battery electric vehicles (BEV) category, also defined as pure electric cars.

Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team.

BYD's total deliveries - which comprise pure electric and hybrid vehicles - in the second quarter hit 982,747 units, up 57.4 per cent from the three months ending March, according to its previous statements.

BYD electric cars waiting to be loaded onto a ship are seen stacked at the international container terminal of Taicang Port in Suzhou, in China's eastern Jiangsu province on February 8, 2024. Photo: AFP alt=BYD electric cars waiting to be loaded onto a ship are seen stacked at the international container terminal of Taicang Port in Suzhou, in China's eastern Jiangsu province on February 8, 2024. Photo: AFP>

At the end of May, the Shenzhen-based carmaker unveiled a new and improved version of its plug-in hybrid technology, which enables an electric car to go as far as 2,100km on a single charge with a full tank of petrol.

China is now the world's largest automotive and EV market, with electric cars accounting for 60 per cent of global sales.

In the fourth quarter of 2023, BYD, for the first time, overtook Tesla to take pole position as the world's top BEV maker, but Tesla regained the top spot in the first quarter of 2024, when it recorded deliveries of 386,810 units worldwide, versus BYD's 300,114.

A raft of Chinese carmakers, ranging from BYD to state-owned carmaker SAIC Motor and EV start-up Hozon New Energy Automobile, have ramped up their overseas expansion plans over the past two years as they strengthen their design and manufacturing abilities.

While that may have reduced Tesla's lead, it is unlikely to diminish its popularity.

"Despite Chinese EV assemblers' growing might around the world, the popularity of Tesla's vehicles has not been largely affected," said Gao Shen, an independent analyst in Shanghai. "Chinese carmakers' path to the international markets will not turn out to be smooth because they face both a strong rival and curbs from various governments."

However, punitive measures could act as deterrents in markets like the US and the European Union, where authorities slapped additional tariffs of up to 100 per cent on Chinese-made electric cars due to the government subsidies. The European Commission said "the battery electric vehicles value chain in China benefits from unfair subsidisation, which is causing a threat of economic injury to European Union BEV producers".

BYD's pure EVs are priced from 100,000 yuan (US$13,749) to 200,000 yuan, while Tesla's Shanghai-made Model 3 starts at 231,900 yuan, and the basic edition of Model Y is offered at 249,900 yuan.

Tesla's Gigafactory in Shanghai remained the company's largest production base worldwide, according to its statement. The plant shipped 205,747 vehicles to customers in both China and abroad between April and June, which accounted for 46.3 per cent of Tesla's global total in the same period.

.

.

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright © 2024 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Copyright (c) 2024. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.