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HONG KONG—China’s electric-vehicle makers, buoyed by their success in eclipsing foreign rivals at home, are increasingly venturing abroad as the country’s car exports surge.
Led by the Warren Buffett-backed auto giant
BYD Co.
, Chinese EV makers have launched a dozen own-branded models across at least 16 countries over the past two years, including in most major economies in Northern and Western Europe.
BYD, the world’s second-largest battery electric vehicle seller last year after
Tesla Inc.,
has ordered at least two car carrier ships to export its cars. It is set to bring more of its models this year to Australia, New Zealand, the U.K. and Belgium. Some overseas dealers and buyers say they are drawn to Chinese cars by pricing, innovative features and speed of delivery.
Dominating their home market, the Chinese EVs potentially pose more of a challenge to Japanese and European rivals in developed markets than did China’s cheaper gas-powered cars, which are sold mostly in the rest of Asia and South America.
So far, exports of Chinese-branded EVs to Europe are still a trickle and they face significant challenges. Established foreign car makers are accelerating development of their own EVs and Chinese companies are increasingly facing headwinds abroad amid political tensions between Beijing and Western governments.
NIO Inc.
has said it would launch in the U.S. by 2025. Other Chinese car brands haven’t announced any plans for the American market, where the share of EVs is lower than in Europe.
In China, almost 80% of EVs sold in 2022 were made by Chinese brands. Tesla cars made up around 15% and the remainder were made by other foreign brands in joint ventures.
Government subsidies and preferential policies over the past decade have benefited both domestic and foreign EV makers in China, helping lower production costs, cut sticker prices and put Chinese firms at the leading edge of EV technology.
Other brands that have begun exporting electric cars include U.S.-listed Chinese EV startups NIO and
XPeng Inc.,
as well as Hongqi, known locally as the “Rolls-Royce of China” and the vehicle of choice for elite officials riding in Chinese military parades. Hongqi is a brand under state-owned auto maker FAW Group Co.
The brands churn out new models with upgraded gadgets and features to meet demand in China’s fast-growing market, the world’s largest for EVs. They can also scale up quickly: At least a dozen Chinese car makers each pumped out more than 100,000 EVs or plug-in hybrids last year.
In Germany, Hedin Mobility Group AB, one of Europe’s largest dealerships, last August signed a deal with BYD to distribute three of its models in the country. The dealership wanted a manufacturer offering quality and able to deliver in large quantities, said Lars Pauly, chief executive of Hedin’s electric mobility unit.
“We made the clear decision that BYD will probably be the most successful brand from China,” said Mr. Pauly. BYD’s global deliveries reached almost 1.9 million EVs and plug-in hybrids in 2022, mostly in China, where it topped sales. It exported almost 56,000 cars last year.
BYD’s EVs are ready-made and en route to European ports when orders come in, while European-made EVs typically take six months to two years before they reach customers, said Andreas Knipp, the head of BYD sales at the Senger Group, another German dealership.
The EV Rivals Aiming for Tesla’s Crown in China
EVs and plug-in hybrids made up about a third of all China’s vehicle exports last year, according to Bernstein Research, and are the fastest-growing segment. The number was 89% higher than 2021, compared with an increase of 50% for gas-powered vehicles, according to the China Passenger Car Association.
China’s EV exports are currently dominated by foreign brands manufacturing in China, such as Tesla and onetime British marque MG, which is now owned by the Shanghai government’s
SAIC Motor Corp.
, the nation’s top car exporter.
Gas-powered cars still make up the biggest chunk of China’s overall global passenger car exports, which reached around 2.67 million units last year to rival those of Germany, according to data from the countries’ respective car associations, though trailing Japan.
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Eddy Poropat bought BYD’s Atto 3 compact SUV last year as high gas prices made his almost 200-mile commute between Sydney and Canberra in one of his family’s two Land Rovers untenable.
Mr. Poropat said he learned he would have to wait eight months for a Tesla Model 3, but could have the keys to the BYD sooner—and pay around $23,000 less.
“It’s great for the price I paid,” the IT executive said, praising the driving experience and handling of the BYD car.
Tesla didn’t respond to a request for comment on delivery times in Australia.
The Atto 3, BYD’s main export model, is priced between $40,000 to $43,000 in Germany after government rebates, double the amount it sells for in China. It is marketed as an “accessible premium” vehicle, said Senger Group’s Mr. Knipp, even though it is one of the brand’s cheapest cars back home.
Eddy Poropat, who lives in Australia, bought a BYD electric car after high gas prices made his long commute too expensive.
Photo:
Eddy Poropat
Chinese brands made up about 5% of the European EV market last year and may reach 15% by 2025, according to Fitch Solutions. Europe’s bestselling EV brands are Tesla and Volkswagen, according to research firm Jato Dynamics.
Car makers in China are expected to produce millions more vehicles than can be sold domestically by 2025, analysts at Bernstein Research said, motivating car makers to sell more overseas.
In Norway, where eight out of 10 cars sold in 2022 were electric, five Chinese car makers registered almost 7,000 EVs last year, making up about 5% of the country’s EV registrations, though still well behind Tesla’s 22,000 vehicles, the country’s most popular EV brand.
Near Oslo, store manager Kjetil Dypaune weighed several brands when he went shopping for a bigger car for the family’s long road-trip vacations with their dog.
After trying out EVs from Volkswagen, Tesla and Hongqi, he settled on NIO’s ES8, a 7-seat SUV made in eastern China’s Anhui province. It costs around two-thirds that of a Tesla Model X with similar specs.
He liked the fact he didn’t have to buy the car battery. Instead, he rents one for $200 a month that allows him to swap dead batteries at a NIO station or upgrade to new versions later, though NIO only has three such stations in the country so far, short of its planned 20.
Write to Selina Cheng at selina.cheng@wsj.com
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