BYD steps up Europe expansion with new compact SUV

Peugeot Invest SA

10/01/2025 11:06

Jan 10 (Reuters) - BYD  002594.SZ  will launch its new
Atto 2 compact SUV in Europe in February, the Chinese EV giant
said on Friday, adding to competition in Europe's electric car
market.
    The Atto 2, which complements the larger Atto 3 released in
2022, is the group's most accessible SUV yet and will compete in
the B-SUV segment, a company spokesperson told Reuters.
    
    WHY IT'S IMPORTANT
    The launch comes two months after the European Union
approved increased tariffs on Chinese-built electric vehicles
(EVs), including BYD ones, of up to 45.3%.
    The Atto 2 will compete in Europe's so called B-SUV segment
of compact EV SUVs with rival models including Stellantis'
 STLAM.MI  Peugeot e-2008, Citroën e-C3, Opel Mokka-e and Fiat
600e, the Kia  000270.KS  Niro, and later this year Renault's
 RENA.PA  new R4. 
    
    BY THE NUMBERS
    While the Atto 2 price will only be confirmed "in many
countries in a few weeks' time", it should logically be between
the Dolphin and Atto 3, the spokesperson told Reuters.
    In Britain, the Dolphin starts at 26,140 pounds ($32,157)
and the Atto 3 starts at 37,140 pounds ($45,689). 
    The all-electric Atto 2 will be 4.31 metres (14.14 feet)
long, 1.83 metres wide and 1.68 metres tall, with a wheelbase of
2.62 metres, BYD said. It features a blade battery and uses
cell-to-body (CTB) construction.
   
    QUOTES
    "We're excited to start 2025 with another important model
for our plans in Europe", BYD Executive Vice President Stella Li
said in a statement.
    
    CONTEXT
    BYD is on course to top its annual sales target of 4 million
vehicles globally, which would put it ahead of Japan's Honda and
Detroit-based Ford for 2024.
     Europe's car safety agency issued a "not recommended"
rating to the driver assistance system used in BYD's Atto 3 EV
in October, dealing a blow to the automaker as it strives to
expand on the continent.

($1 = 0.8129 pounds)

 (Reporting by Alessandro Parodi and Andrey Sychev
Editing by Frances Kerry)
 ((Alessandro.Parodi@thomsonreuters.com;))