BYD is in talks to open dealerships in the Greater Toronto Area, positioning itself as one of the first Chinese automakers in the country under the new trade agreement with Canada.
According to The Globe and Mail, the company wants to establish 20 dealerships within a year, with the brand planning on starting in the Greater Toronto Area. The company then plan to expand to Vancouver, Montreal, and Calgary.
Fellow Chinese manufacturer Chery Automobile Co. is also reportedly set to join the Canadian market, according to Farid Ahmad, who spoke to The Globe and Mail.
Last year, BYD became the world’s top-selling EV manufacturer, recording 2.6 million sales of battery-only passenger EVs and plug-in hybrid vehicles. Interestingly, the domestic auto industry sees the Chinese automakers as threats, with some reasons being the often lower price points, cheaper labour, and (depending on the company) state ownership
According to Ahmad, Chinese companies prefer to operate standalone dealerships but might sell them through existing dealer networks to save both time and money. As The Globe and Mail noted, the 49,000-vehicle yearly cap set by the Canadian government is still fairly small compared to the country’s 1.8 million overall yearly vehicle sales. With that in mind, Ahmad noted that it isn’t reasonable for some dealerships to operate.
Now, the EV import quota will rise to 70,000 in five years, with more than half expected to sell for less than C$35,000. This is also expected to attract Chinese joint-venture investment in the Canadian EV supply chain within the next three years. However, a report came out saying insurance may be higher for incoming Chinese EVs, which could offset the low purchase cost.
To add some context, Canada agreed to reduce tariffs on Chinese EVs from 100 per cent to 6.1 per cent in exchange for lower duties on Canadian canola, lobsters, crabs, and peas.
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Source: The Globe and Mail
