BYD Co, the world’s biggest maker of electric vehicles (both battery and plug-ins), saw a dramatic surge in revenue and earnings in 2022 and says it is planning a huge lift in production and sales this year which will further drive its already strong appetite for lithium and other key green metals.
The giant has outlined plans to boost sales of NEVs (New Energy Vehicles such as battery powered or plug-ins) to 3 million this year, and 3.6 million if all goes well, according to Wang Chuanfu, the company’s founder, chairman and president.
In the wake of the release of its 2022 results earlier this week, BYD held an investor day briefing in China where Wang said that if the 3.6 million target was achieved, 2.8 million vehicles were planned to be sold in China and 800,000 in overseas markets.
BYD sold 1,868,543 vehicles last year, including 1,863,494 NEVs. The company discontinued production and sales of vehicles powered entirely by internal combustion engines in March 2022.
The company shipped 50,021 NEVs overseas from July to December 2022. It first announced foreign NEV sales figures in July 2022.
BYD reported net profit of 16.62 billion Chinese yuan ($US2.42 billion) last year, almost five times that of the 2021 figure of CNY3.05 billion ($US450 million).
Almost half of the year figure came in the final quarter when sales of NEVs surged as buyers rushed to take advantage of purchase subsidies ending at December 31.
Full year 2022 revenue rose to 424.06 billion yuan (around $US62 billion), nearly double the 216.14 billion yuan (around $US31.5 billion) in 2021.
BYD said the surge in 2022 revenues and earnings was mostly due to the 213% jump in new-energy vehicle sales. Of the 1.857 million sold, 911,141 were battery powered EVs and 946,238 plug-ins.
Besides new energy vehicles like battery powered EVs, BYD also produces batteries, cell phone components, secondary rechargeable batteries and photovoltaic products.
It said its automotive business dominated revenue, contributing 324.7 billion yuan, or 76.6% of revenue in 2022, up 152% from 2021.
In the fourth quarter, BYD sold 683,440 NEVs, up 157% from 2021 and 26.9% from the third quarter.
As a result, the company reported net earnings of RMB 7.3 billion ($US1.06 billion) in the December quarter, up 1114.3% from 2021 and up nearly 28% from the third quarter.
BYD’s revenue in the fourth quarter was RMB 156.4 billion ($US22.8 billion), up 120.4% from the final three months of 2021and 33.56% from the third quarter.
Despite its confidence about 2023, BYD has started the year in the middle of a price war for NEVS in China.
BYD still dominates sales of NEVs in China ahead of Tesla’s B-EVs (battery powered) but sales growth has slowed and price cuts have come from Tesla, BYD and other car companies. Makes of conventionally powered cars such as VW have replied with price cuts and other discounts of their own.
Amid weakening demand, BYD offered discounts for its Song Plus and Seal EVs this month.
The Chinesen NEV giant has been trimming output since the start of the year when industry-wide sales began to slow and China ended a national subsidy programme for EVs and plug-in electric vehicles at the end of last year.
BYD is reported to have cut back shifts at two of its five car making plants in China.
It has reduced shifts at two auto assembly plants in Shenzhen and Xian in China making its top-selling models including the Song and Qin EVs.
