Category: eMobility

BYD partners with Jamaican dealer to tap Caribbean markets

The partnership will cover 10 countries and Jamaican dealer ATL will start accepting pre-orders immediately, with deliveries to begin in October.

(Image credit: )

BYD (OTCMKTS: BYDDY) entered into a partnership with Jamaican car dealer ATL Automotive on June 26 to jointly provide new energy passenger car products for the Caribbean markets.

ATL, which was founded in 1997 and has a dedicated workforce of up to 600 employees, has been the largest investor in Jamaica's automotive sector since 2010, according to a BYD press release today. The two held a signing ceremony in Jamaica's capital city of Kingston.

BYD and ATL will work together to provide passenger new energy vehicle (NEV) sales and after-sales services to consumers in the Caribbean, with operations in 10 countries.

ATL has been appointed as BYD's regional dealer for sales and after-sales operations in Jamaica. In addition, ATL will assume regional management responsibilities in nine additional countries, including Trinidad and Tobago, Cayman, Curaçao, Barbados, Aruba, Antigua, Saint Lucia, Guyana, and Suriname.

The two plan to open two BYD showrooms in Jamaica, in Kingston and Montego Bay, in order to provide local consumers with a one-stop experience of BYD technology and BYD products, according to the release.

"We will begin accepting pre-orders immediately, with car deliveries scheduled to commence in October. Then there will be a massive roll-out of showrooms across the Caribbean. The future is electric, and BYD will be Jamaica's and the Caribbean's number one EV brand," said Adam Stewart, executive chairman of ATL.

In the coming year, BYD will complete the construction of 10 stores with ATL, said Neva Zhang, country manager of the Caribbean and Central American Countries of BYD.

BYD's press release did not mention which models will first be available in the Caribbean.

This is the latest development for the Chinese NEV giant in the overseas passenger car market, where it launched the Dolphin model on June 22 with Australian partner EV Direct.

BYD sold 240,220 NEVs in May, up 108.99 percent from 114,943 units in the same month last year and up 14.23 percent from 210,295 units in April.

In May, BYD sold 10,203 NEVs in overseas markets, down 31.19 percent from 14,827 units in April.

The company stopped production and sales of vehicles powered entirely by internal combustion engines in March last year and switched to focus on producing plug-in hybrids and pure electric vehicles.

BYD expands presence in Middle East with launch of Atto 3 in UAE

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Zeekr starts pre-sales of Zeekr 001 and Zeekr X in Europe, deliveries to start within this year

's first direct offline stores will open in the Netherlands, Sweden by the end of the year, and it will be in most of Western Europe by 2026.

(Zeekr 001. Image credit: CnEVPost)

Holding Group's premium electric vehicle (EV) brand Zeekr has started pre-sales of two models in Europe, after announcing plans to enter the market two months ago.

Zeekr is bringing the Zeekr 001 shooting brake as well as the Zeekr X city SUV to Europe with starting prices of 59,490 euros ($65,150), and 44,990 euros, respectively, according to a press release today.

Both models will go on sale first in Sweden and the Netherlands, with first deliveries expected to begin within the year, Zeekr said.

Similar to its local counterpart (NYSE: Nio), Zeekr will bring its direct sales model from China to Europe.

Zeekr's first direct offline stores will open in Stockholm, Sweden, and Amsterdam, Netherlands, by the end of the year, and it will be in most of Western Europe by 2026, according to the release.

(Zeekr X. Image credit: CnEVPost)

Zeekr was officially launched as an independent company in March 2021, with its first model, the Zeekr 001, launched on April 15, 2021, and deliveries in China starting in October 2021.

The Zeekr 001 is currently offered in four versions in China with starting prices of RMB 300,000 ($41,410), RMB 300,000, RMB 349,000 and RMB 386,000 respectively.

On November 1, 2022, Zeekr's second model, the Zeekr 009 MPV, was officially launched, and its delivery started on January 15.

On April 12, Zeekr unveiled its third model, the Zeekr X, and its deliveries in China began on June 12.

The Zeekr X is currently offered in three versions in China, with starting prices of RMB 189,800, RMB 209,800 and RMB 209,800 respectively.

On April 18, Zeek announced its European strategy on the first day of the Shanghai auto show, stating that its European headquarters will be located in Amsterdam.

In the Netherlands, Zeekr offers three versions of the Zeekr 001 with starting prices of 59,490 euros, 62,490 euros and 67,490 euros respectively. Zeekr X is offered in two versions in the Netherlands with starting prices of 44,990 euros and 49,490 euros respectively.

In Sweden, the Zeekr 001 is available in three versions starting at 677,000 SEK ($62,760), 707,000 SEK and 757,000 SEK. The Zeekr X is available in two versions in Sweden starting at 550,000 SEK and 595,000 SEK.

The Zeekr 001 and Zeekr X were developed at Zeekr's global design and development center in Gothenburg, Sweden, the company said in April.

Zeekr's European team of more than 1,500 engineers and designers is already in place and has produced multiple models for the Geely. Their long-standing experience has been a core strength of Zeekr's successful entry into Europe, the company said.

Zeekr delivered 8,678 vehicles in May, bringing January-May deliveries to 32,013, up 117.66 percent from the same period last year, according to figures released earlier this month.

The company is aiming to double deliveries this year from last year's 71,941 units to about 140,000.

($1 = 0.9131 euros, $1 = RMB 7.2445, $1 = 10.7870 SEK)

Zeekr starts delivery of Zeekr 001 with CATL Qilin Battery, CLTC range up to 1,032 km

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SAE plans to standardize the Tesla NACS connector

Tesla chargingTesla calls its charging connector the North American Charging Standard (NACS), but as more automakers move to adopt it, a major industry group aims to make NACS a standard in more than just name. SAE International on Tuesday announced plans to standardize the Tesla connector. This will help ensure that any manufacturer or supplier outside of...

China NEV retail in Jun 1-25 at 500,000, up 15% from same period last month, CPCA data show

Retail penetration of NEVs in China was 36.92 percent from June 1 to June 25, and 32.50 percent year-to-date.

China NEV retail in Jun 1-25 at 500,000, up 15% from same period last month, CPCA data show-CnEVPost

(Image credit: CnEVPost)

From June 1 to June 25, retail sales of passenger new energy vehicles (NEVs) in China were 500,000 units, up 13 percent year-on-year and up 15 percent from the same period last month, according to data released today by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

So far this year, retail sales of passenger NEVs in China were 2.92 million units, up 35 percent year-on-year.

From June 1 to June 25, wholesale sales of passenger NEVs in China were 534,000 units, up 14 percent year-on-year and up 14 percent from the same period last month, according to the CPCA.

Wholesale sales of passenger NEVs so far this year were 3,317,000 units, up 40 percent year-on-year.

Between June 1 and June 25, retail sales of all passenger vehicles in China were 1.35 million units, down 1 percent year-on-year while up 9 percent from the same period last month, the CPCA said.

So far this year, cumulative retail sales of passenger cars in China were up 3 percent to 8.986 million units.

This means that from June 1 to June 25, the penetration of NEVs at retail in China was 36.92 percent, and 32.50 percent year-to-date.

In the first week of June -- June 1-4 -- the average daily retail sales of passenger cars in China were 31,000 units, down 9 percent from a year ago and 42 percent lower than the same period last month.

In the second week of June -- June 5 to 11 -- average daily retail sales of passenger cars were 43,000 units, down 10 percent year-on-year and down 14 percent compared to the same period in May.

In the third week of June -- June 12 to 18 -- average daily retail sales of passenger cars were 58,000 units, down 2 percent year-on-year, but up 21 percent compared to the same period in May.

In the fourth week of June -- June 19-25 -- average daily retail sales of passenger cars were 75,000 units, up 9 percent year-on-year and up 53 percent compared to the same period in May.

China began halving purchase taxes on mainstream internal combustion engine vehicles last June, causing sales to shift toward the beginning of the month, the CPCA said. The policy was not renewed when it expired at the end of last year.

By comparison, June is a normal sales month this year, so a dip at the beginning of the month is normal, the CPCA said.

Notably, China saw campaigns to promote auto consumption during this month, which, combined with dealers facing semi-annual performance reviews, is helping support June auto sales, according to the CPCA.

Data Table: China auto sales in Jun 1-25

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Nio begins delivery of new ES8 in China

The new ES8 was launched in December 2022 and currently has a starting price of about $68,900 including the battery.

(Image credit: )

Nio (NYSE: NIO) has begun deliveries of the new ES8 in China, having only allowed customers to lock in orders for the flagship SUV earlier today.

Deliveries of the new ES8 have officially kicked off, Nio announced on Weibo this afternoon.

The electric vehicle (EV) maker did not provide more information, including the number of first deliveries of the new ES8.

Nio launched the new ES8 on Nio Day 2022, December 24, 2022, as its first production vehicle transitions to the latest NT 2.0 platform.

The model is offered in three versions – regular version, Executive Edition, and Signature Edition -- and after price adjustments over the past few months, they now start at RMB 498,000 ($68,900), RMB 518,000, and RMB 598,000, respectively, including the battery.

If customers choose to purchase the car using the BaaS (battery as a service) plan, the starting prices for the three versions are RMB 428,000, RMB 448,000 and RMB 470,000 respectively, with the monthly battery rental cost starting at RMB 980.

It's worth noting that as Nio's highest-priced model, the new ES8 is unlikely to contribute much in terms of sales, even though it is one of the best models in its market.

In May, retail sales of models priced above RMB 400,000 in China were 53,000 units, accounting for just 3 percent of all passenger car sales of 1.74 million units, according to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).

Prior to the launch of the new ES8, its predecessor saw its highest sales ever in December 2021 at 2,782 units, contributing 26.5 percent of Nio's total sales of 10,489 units for the month, according to data monitored by CnEVPost.

Nio ES8 sales have been below 2,000 units since January 2022, with the less expensive ES6 contributing the bulk of sales in most months.

Nio launched the new ES6 on May 24, with a current starting price of RMB 338,000 including the battery. Deliveries of the new ES6 began on launch night.

When the EV maker reported first-quarter earnings on June 9, it guided for second-quarter deliveries of between 23,000 and 25,000 vehicles, meaning it expects to deliver 10,187-12,187 vehicles in June.

Nio sold 3,200 units last week and 8,000 from June 1 to June 25, according to figures shared yesterday by its local counterpart .

($1 = RMB 7.2274)

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Kia starts accepting pre-orders for EV6 in China, limited to 1,000 units

Kia has not yet announced pricing for the EV6 in China, which starts at $42,600 in the US.

Kia starts accepting pre-orders for EV6 in China, limited to 1,000 units-CnEVPost

(Image credit: Kia)

Kia Motors, an affiliate of Hyundai Motor Co, is accepting pre-orders in China for its first all-electric model, the EV6.

Starting June 28, Chinese consumers can pre-order the EV6 by paying RMB 666 ($92) for the model, which will be imported into China but is limited to 1,000 units, Kia announced today.

Kia has not yet announced the prices for the EV6 in China; the model has a starting price of $42,600 in the US, according to its website.

The car is based on Kia's EV-specific platform E-GMP and has a wheelbase of 2,900 mm.

The vehicle offers a variety of all-electric, zero-emission powertrain options, including a long-range version with a 77.4 kWh battery pack and a standard-range version with a 58-kWh battery pack.

The Kia EV6 has a maximum power of 125 kW and a maximum torque of 350 Nm in the standard range rear-wheel drive version and a maximum power of 173 kW and a maximum torque of 605 Nm in the standard range four-wheel drive version, which can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 6.2 seconds.

The EV6 long-range rear-wheel drive version has a maximum power of 168 kW and a maximum torque of 350 Nm. Its long-range 4WD version has a maximum power of 239 kW and a maximum torque of 605 Nm, and can accelerate from 0-100 km/h in 5.2 seconds.

The car supports 800 V charging and takes only 18 minutes to charge from 10 percent to 80 percent. For the long-range 2WD version, a 4.5-minute charge adds 100 km of range, the company said.

Kia announced its official entry into the Chinese EV market at an event on March 20, unveiling the EV5 concept, EV9 concept and EV6 GT.

Kia plans to launch its flagship electric SUV EV9 in 2024, an entry-level all-electric SUV in 2025, a premium electric sedan based on a next-generation EV-specific platform in 2026 and a mid-size all-electric SUV in 2027.

The EV9 concept car has a length of over 5000 mm and a wheelbase of 3100 mm, with a 3-row, 6-seat interior design.

In China, Kia is aiming for 450,000 units by 2030, with new energy models accounting for 40 percent of the total, according to its previously announced plans.

Kia enters China's crowded EV market, 1st model expected to launch in Aug

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