Source: Getty Images Plus/metamorworks

The event in Turin saw participation from 380 local component suppliers, and 176 individual B2B meetings were held between BYD and companies from all over Italy

Chinese electric vehicle and battery manufacturer BYD has met with several Italian automotive component suppliers in Turin, Italy, to select new suppliers for its Europe-based manufacturing sites.

The event, organized by BYD with the support of the Italian Association of the Automotive Industry (Associazione Nazionale Filiera Industria Automobilistica [ANFIA]), was aimed at establishing a common ground between the vehicle manufacturer and local supply chain stakeholders, along with discussing BYD’s industrial strategy for Europe and sourcing opportunities.

In a press note released by the industry lobby group on Feb. 20, ANFIA said that the BYD-organized event in Turin saw participation from 380 local component suppliers, and 176 individual business-to-business meetings were held between BYD and companies from all over Italy.

BYD’s move to seek increased presence with localization of parts in Europe comes despite several roadblocks, including the EU’s decision to impose countervailing tariffs on imported battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) from China. These tariffs were implemented by the European Commission after a 13-month anti-subsidy investigation, which found that the BEV value chain in China benefits from unfair subsidies from the government and that these subsidies help automakers in China keep BEV prices artificially low, threatening an economic injury to the carmakers in Europe.

The European Commission approved an additional tariff of 17% on BYD Auto, along with imposing 18.8% on Geely Group, 35.3% on SAIC Group — the owner of the MG Motor brand, late last year. These tariffs were applied on top of the existing import duty of 10% on BEVs shipped from China.

BYD’s ambitions for Europe remain consistent irrespective of these countervailing tariffs. To work around these import duties, the carmaker is building two manufacturing plants in Europe — one in Hungary and the other in Turkey, with plans to localize parts and offer a full product range across all segments. This includes addressing customer demand at both ends — luxury buyers as well as budget-conscious buyers. BYD could introduce brands such as Denza and Yangwang in the luxury category, and it plans to roll out the entry-level Seagull A-segment minicar in Europe this April.

While the incoming BYD Seagull is expected to give a run for the money to a number of locally produced BEVs in Europe, the Chinese automaker is also shifting its product strategy for the continent. This includes shifting its focus from a BEV-only portfolio to introduce plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). BYD plans to launch a PHEV variant of every major new model within six months of launching the corresponding BEV model in Europe — a strategy aimed at mitigating the impact of countervailing tariffs imposed by the EU. The strategy also appears to be in line with the surging consumer demand for hybrid EVs in Europe, as year-over-year growth in BEV uptake fails to take off as anticipated earlier.

BYD’s upcoming Hungary-based EV plant is expected to open in October 2025, followed by the commencement of operations at its Turkey-based facility in March 2026. According to S&P Global Mobility forecast, BYD’s Hungarian and Turkish plants will have a combined annual production capacity of 500,000 units, with production output projected to be about 220,000 vehicles by 2027.

ANFIA’s press note mentioned that BYD’s supplier meeting event in Turin saw an overwhelming response from Italian component manufacturers, with participation levels exceeding initial estimates.

“This high level of interest led to an increase in the meeting’s capacity, allowing most companies to be accredited,” the note said, adding that the carmaker is now mulling to organize a second such meeting for further evaluation.

During the individual B2B meetings, BYD executives specifically illustrated the possible industrial opportunities for each supplier they met with, sharing their evaluation on potential contributions to its production activities in Europe, starting with Hungary in the last quarter of 2025.

“In the medium term, BYD intends to sell cars produced in Europe within the continent,” the note mentioned.

Participants at the supplier meeting were also given a chance to test-drive seven BYD models that were available at the event, including the new Atto 2 and the Sealion 7.

“The quality, innovation and flexibility that have always distinguished Italian component companies have an important opportunity to assert themselves in relation to BYD’s production investments in Europe,” said Roberto Vavassori, president of ANFIA. “This initiative is part of the dialogue that ANFIA seeks to facilitate to help companies seize new opportunities, understand market trends, and maintain and improve their positioning, with the aim of creating a competitive context that enhances Italian excellence.”

Contacts

Copyright © 2025 S&P Global Inc. All rights reserved.

These materials, including any software, data, processing technology, index data, ratings, credit-related analysis, research, model, software or other application or output described herein, or any part thereof (collectively the “Property”) constitute the proprietary and confidential information of S&P Global Inc its affiliates (each and together “S&P Global”) and/or its third party provider licensors. S&P Global on behalf of itself and its third-party licensors reserves all rights in and to the Property. These materials have been prepared solely for information purposes based upon information generally available to the public and from sources believed to be reliable.
Any copying, reproduction, reverse-engineering, modification, distribution, transmission or disclosure of the Property, in any form or by any means, is strictly prohibited without the prior written consent of S&P Global. The Property shall not be used for any unauthorized or unlawful purposes. S&P Global’s opinions, statements, estimates, projections, quotes and credit-related and other analyses are statements of opinion as of the date they are expressed and not statements of fact or recommendations to purchase, hold, or sell any securities or to make any investment decisions, and do not address the suitability of any security, and there is no obligation on S&P Global to update the foregoing or any other element of the Property. S&P Global may provide index data. Direct investment in an index is not possible. Exposure to an asset class represented by an index is available through investable instruments based on that index. The Property and its composition and content are subject to change without notice.

THE PROPERTY IS PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” BASIS. NEITHER S&P GLOBAL NOR ANY THIRD PARTY PROVIDERS (TOGETHER, “S&P GLOBAL PARTIES”) MAKE ANY WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, FREEDOM FROM BUGS, SOFTWARE ERRORS OR DEFECTS, THAT THE PROPERTY’S FUNCTIONING WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR THAT THE PROPERTY WILL OPERATE IN ANY SOFTWARE OR HARDWARE CONFIGURATION, NOR ANY WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO ITS ACCURACY, AVAILABILITY, COMPLETENESS OR TIMELINESS, OR TO THE RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED FROM THE USE OF THE PROPERTY. S&P GLOBAL PARTIES SHALL NOT IN ANY WAY BE LIABLE TO ANY RECIPIENT FOR ANY INACCURACIES, ERRORS OR OMISSIONS REGARDLESS OF THE CAUSE. Without limiting the foregoing, S&P Global Parties shall have no liability whatsoever to any recipient, whether in contract, in tort (including negligence), under warranty, under statute or otherwise, in respect of any loss or damage suffered by any recipient as a result of or in connection with the Property, or any course of action determined, by it or any third party, whether or not based on or relating to the Property. In no event shall S&P Global be liable to any party for any direct, indirect, incidental, exemplary, compensatory, punitive, special or consequential damages, costs, expenses, legal fees or losses (including without limitation lost income or lost profits and opportunity costs or losses caused by negligence) in connection with any use of the Property even if advised of the possibility of such damages. The Property should not be relied on and is not a substitute for the skill, judgment and experience of the user, its management, employees, advisors and/or clients when making investment and other business decisions.

The S&P Global logo is a registered trademark of S&P Global, and the trademarks of S&P Global used within this document or materials are protected by international laws. Any other names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

The inclusion of a link to an external website by S&P Global should not be understood to be an endorsement of that website or the website's owners (or their products/services). S&P Global is not responsible for either the content or output of external websites. S&P Global keeps certain activities of its divisions separate from each other in order to preserve the independence and objectivity of their respective activities. As a result, certain divisions of S&P Global may have information that is not available to other S&P Global divisions. S&P Global has established policies and procedures to maintain the confidentiality of certain nonpublic information received in connection with each analytical process. S&P Global may receive compensation for its ratings and certain analyses, normally from issuers or underwriters of securities or from obligors. S&P Global reserves the right to disseminate its opinions and analyses. S&P Global Ratings’ public ratings and analyses are made available on its sites, www.spglobal.com/ratings (free of charge) and www.capitaliq.com (subscription), and may be distributed through other means, including via S&P Global publications and third party redistributors.