RM 378 mil to be invested in BYD Thailand's local assembly (CKD) plant

Another electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer is planning to make Thailand as its base of production with BYD announcing its debut in the Kingdom’s passenger market with the help of a name familiar with the country’s automotive industry.

Rêver Automotive Co., Ltd. is headed by the Phornprapha family which was once associated with Nissan in Thailand. During its launch as BYD’s distributors, the company announced that at least one model will be introduced later this year.

There is no specific mention of the model but it could be the Atto 3 which is already available in a few right-hand-drive (RHD) markets like Singapore and Australia.

Thailand is the fourth RHD market that BYD has announced within the past year. Besides Australia, Singapore, and Thailand, the Chinese EV maker also announced a launch in Japan.

Also read: BYD to invade Toyota, Nissan, and Honda's Japanese EV expansion plans with 3 models in 2023

While the other 3 markets only mentioned distribution plans, Rêver also announced that production of BYDs in the Kingdom is also mulled. This is in line with the Kingdom’s goal to be an EV manufacturing hub in the region by 2035.

Also read: Thailand to ban sale of combustion engines by 2035, aiming to be EV manufacturing hub

Helping to boost BYD’s aim to be within the top 5 automakers in Thailand in the next 5 years is an investment of THB 3 billion (~RM 378 million) by Rêver. The distributors also announced that 31 showrooms and service centres are planned to be opened by the end of the year with the first 5 showrooms to be opened in Bangkok.

Also read: Ex-Nissan Thailand distributor to launch BYD in the Kingdom on 8-Aug

Though local assembly (CKD) is in the works, the initial batch of models will be imported from China. Rêver aims for domestic sales of BYD cars to be at 10,000 units in the first year and increase to 50,000 to 60,000 units in the next 5 years.

Besides, BYD has also collaborated with Thai EV charging station provider, Sharge to launch more than 1,000 fast-charging stations across the country while also aiming to educate Thais on the benefits of owning an EV.

Also read: Study shows that 3 in 4 Thais don’t think the current EV charging infrastructure is enough

The Thai cabinet had approved EV incentives including subsidies to boost the industry in terms of purchasing and production between 2022-23 back in February. The subsidies range from THB 70,000 to THB 150,000 (~RM 8.8k - RM 19k) based on the type of vehicle with lower excise tax and import duties applied to both CKD and CBU models.

Also read: Ora Good Cat dominates Thai EV sales in first half of 2022 - Can it be repeated in Malaysia?

BYD already has a presence in Thailand where its commercial vehicles including electric vans and forklifts are sold by Siam ATR. With Rêver being the sole distributor of BYD that will also include the commercial vehicle division, something that BYD could be entering in Malaysia.

Also read: BYD to assemble CKD EVs in Malaysia through CSH Alliance