A visitor tests a new energy car at the production base of BYD Co Ltd in Huizhou, Guangdong province. The Chinese battery and carmaker is vehicle manufacturing facility in Saudi Arabia. Zhu Xingxin / China Daily

BYD Co exploring ways to set up shops in Middle Eastern markets

Chinese battery and car maker BYD Co Ltd is planning to set up a vehicle manufacturing facility in Saudi Arabia, to further accelerate its international expansion.

Ibrahim Qahtan, BYD's director in charge of Middle East market, said in a recent interaction that the Warren Buffett-backed company is exploring the possibility of having an assembly plant in the country, to provide vehicles and spare parts for the local market.

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Once the local charging infrastructure is ready, BYD also plans to export its electric vehicles to Saudi Arabia. However, further details and the actual timetable are yet to be finalized, he said.

The Saudi Arabia plan is the latest overseas expansion move made by the Shenzhen-based company, after Senior Vice-President Li Ke announced earlier this year that it would invest $100 million for a factory to produce 4,000 electric buses a year in Brazil. The factory, to be located near Sao Paulo and fully operational by 2016, will also provide products to surrounding markets and Latin America.

BYD was the first Chinese automaker to set up an electric bus plant in California last year, with an initial investment of $30 million. The company has already started to manufacture vehicles in Iraq, Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan.

In May, China's homegrown Great Wall Motor Co Ltd said it plans to invest 3.2 billion yuan ($510 million) for a car manufacturing plant in Russia, its largest export destination. Located south of Moscow, the factory is expected to produce up to 150,000 vehicles every year.

In April, Great Wall said it was considering expanding production to Malaysia to further stabilize its foothold in Southeast Asia.

Wei Jianjun, chairman of Great Wall, said earlier that the company plans to increase annual sales to 1.3 million units by 2015, with a quarter coming from overseas markets, representing more than 300,000 units.