Warren Buffett-Backed BYD To Set Up New Factory Base In China With $2.2B Yearly Sales Target

China’s largest manufacturer of new energy vehicles (NEV) BYD BYDDY BYDDF, named on the Fortune Global 500 list earlier this month, is planning to set up a new commercial vehicle and parts production base in Huai'an, eastern Jiangsu province, CnEVPost reported.

What Happened: According to a post on Huai'an city's official WeChat account, the firm and the local government launched a strategic partnership in 2017, and the latter is providing strong support for BYD's development, as per the report.

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Production Capacity: The firm’s commercial vehicle and parts production project will be able to hit an annual sales of RMB15 billion ($2.2 billion) when it is fully operational, according to the report.

In July, the firm sold 162,530 NEVs, including 162,214 passenger vehicles and 316 commercial vehicles. BYD has sold 3,509 commercial NEVs this year, 27% lower than a year earlier, the report said.

BYD is backed by Berkshire Hathaway Inc (NYSE: BRK-A) (NYSE: BRK-B) Chairman and CEO Warren Buffett.

Order Book: The firm accumulated more than 700,000 undelivered orders in early July, according to the report citing local media.

Market Presence: BYD’s pure electric buses are present in more than 70 countries and 400 cities worldwide, including over 100 cities in Europe. In July, the firm announced its entry into the passenger vehicle market in Japan.

Price Action: U.S.-listed ADRs of BYD ended 3.3% lower at $73.5 on Friday, but rose 0.6% in extended trading, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

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