Chinese Automaker BYD Reportedly Halts Plans to Sell EVs in Canada
BYD (Build Your Dreams) has halted its plans to break through the Canadian market due to the new federal tariffs on electric and hybrid vehicles coming from China, according to a report by Automotive News, which spoke with anonymous industry sources with knowledge of the matter.
The automaker has not yet responded or made an official announcement.
- Also: China’s BYD Actively Working to Enter Canadian Market: Report
- Also: China’s BYD Shark Plug-in Hybrid Pickup Launches in Mexico, Leaves Out Canada
In late July, we learned that BYD was actively preparing an entry into Canada. Lobbyists representing the Chinese EV giant registered with the federal and Ontario governments to “advise on matters related to the expected market entry of BYD into Canada for the sale of passenger electric vehicles, and the establishment of a new business, and the application of tariffs on EVs.”
Everything about its business model remained up in the air including production and distribution, however.
As you know, the Canadian government implemented a 100-percent surtax on all Chinese-made electric vehicles effective October 1. This surtax, which is added to the import tariff of 6.1 percent that currently applies to EVs produced in China and imported into Canada, includes electric and certain hybrid passenger automobiles, trucks, buses and delivery vans.
Ottawa defended the move by stressing the need to “protect the Canadian auto industry against unfair competition from Chinese producers, which benefit from non-market policies and practices.” Let’s not forget that Canada has invested massively these past few years to secure large-scale plants from Stellantis, Volkswagen and Honda, among others.
BYD reportedly ended discussions with the federal government around mid-August, and information obtained by Automotive News suggests that talks with potential distributors in Canada have also hit the brakes.
The Chinese automaker currently sells its products in around 90 markets globally including Mexico. Similar to Canada, the U.S. has slapped its own 102-percent tariffs on EVs coming from China.
BYD could decide to import vehicles to Canada from countries other than China to avoid the tariffs, but that’s much easier said than done. Another option, of course, would be to build a plant in the U.S. or Canada, but it’s really not clear how this would affect BYD’s cheap prices.
