BYD entered into a partnership with Rwandan distributor CFAO Mobility in 2023, and the local launch of the Atto 3 marks its official entry into the East African market.
(Image credit: BYD)
BYD (OTCMKTS: BYDDF) has officially entered the Rwandan market as it continues to expand its international presence.
The Chinese new energy vehicle (NEV) maker recently held a brand launch in Rwanda and introduced the Atto 3 in the African country, according to a press release it issued yesterday.
The Atto 3 is known as the Yuan Plus in China and was launched on February 19, 2022. The model is the first SUV of BYD’s all-electric platform, e-platform 3.0, and its first model built for the global market.
BYD did not mention the model’s price in Rwanda. The Yuan Plus is currently offered in China in five variants priced at RMB 135,800 ($18,921) RMB 142,800, RMB 145,800, RMB 155,800 and RMB 163,800.
(Abimana Fidele, Permanent Secretary of Rwanda’s Ministry of Infrastructure, gave remarks at the launch.)
BYD entered into a partnership with Rwandan distributor CFAO Mobility in 2023, and the local launch of the Atto 3 marks BYD’s official entry into the East African market.
Rwanda is pushing for sustainable development, with plans to reduce emissions by 38 percent by 2030 and get 20 percent of its urban buses electrified, BYD’s press release said, adding that the company’s NEVs will be a key force in achieving that goal.
BYD’s NEVs, along with CFAO Mobility’s extensive sales network, will be a strong boost to the Rwandan EV market, said Cheruvu Srinivas, the dealership’s chief operating officer in Rwanda.
The Atto 3 is a hot seller in Thailand, Singapore, New Zealand, Brazil and other regions, BYD said at an investor conference on November 15, 2023, adding that it would launch more highly competitive NEV models in the global market.
The Atto 3, BYD’s first global model, sold more than 500,000 units worldwide, the company said in November.
BYD sold a record 341,043 NEVs in December, including 340,178 passenger cars and 865 commercial vehicles, according to figures it announced earlier this month.
The Yuan family sold 41,681 units in December, up 41.44 percent year-on-year while down 1.52 percent from November.
In 2023, Yuan family models sold 428,580 units, up 87.14 percent year-on-year, contributing 14 percent of BYD’s annual NEV sales of 3,024,417 units, according to data compiled by CnEVPost.
($1 = RMB 7.1771)
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