Japanese automaker Toyota to develop battery electric vehicles with China’s BYD

Chinese automaker BYD Company Ltd. (BYD) and Japan’s leading auto company Toyota Motor Corporation have signed an agreement to jointly produce battery electric vehicles (BEVs). The two parties will jointly develop sedans and low-floor SUVs as well as the onboard batteries for these vehicles and others, with the aim to launch them in the Chinese market under the Toyota brand in the first half of the 2020s.

BYD, founded in 1995 as a battery business, has diversified into other energy areas such as electrified vehicles and large-size energy storage cells. Beginning in 2008, BYD was the first company worldwide to mass-produce plug-in hybrid electrified vehicles (PHEVs).

Similarly, Toyota was the first company to mass-produce hybrid electrified vehicles (HEVs) in 1997.

To curb global warming, both BYD and Toyota seek to reduce CO2 emissions by promoting the widespread use of BEVs. To accomplish these goals, both companies believe there is a need to put aside their rivalry and collaborate; therefore, the two companies have agreed to jointly develop BEVs. 

Going forward, BYD and Toyota will make use of the electrified vehicles, and battery development technologies they have acquired through their market introductions and will work together to further develop BEVs that are attractive to customers and in further promoting their widespread adoption.