Vemo orders 1,000 e-cars from BYD in Mexico

BYD has received a large order for 1,000 electric cars from Mexico. Local mobility provider VEMO has ordered 1,000 units of the D1 electric car that was developed by BYD and Didi Chuxing for ridesharing services.

According to the Chinese manufacturer, 200 of these have already been put into operation. The manufacturer claims the 1,000 D1s are the largest electric taxi fleet outside China.

As usual for BYD, the D1 uses LFP batteries without cobalt, nickel and manganese. This is the company’s Blade Battery, which uses particularly large and elongated cells. These cells are built directly into the battery pack, in a cell-to-pack system. In the D1, this results in an NEDC range of up to 418 kilometres.

The design of the D1 is startlingly similar the VW ID.3. However, the D1 has a sliding door on the passenger side at the rear to make it easier for passengers to get in and out.

Alejandro Rosette, Co-director of Mobility Platforms of VEMO, said, “Having BYD’s D1 models as part of the VEMO’s electric fleet will allow us to increase our operational capabilities with mobility platforms and the availability of our recharging infrastructure.

Vemo is, according to its website, a Mexican company “with an integrated and innovative model, committed to accelerating clean mobility in Mexico and Latin America.” The company was founded late last year by Affiliates of Riverstone Holdings LLC (“Riverstone”), a private equity firm “investing in opportunities in long-term decarbonization secular trends in energy transition, power, and infrastructure,” according to the Vemo website.

Earlier this year, Vemo made a strategic partnership with Uber to increase the number of electric vehicles available on the ride-hailing app in Mexico city. The company says the first phase is a pilot test, whereby 250 electric vehicles are to be incorporated to the platform throughout the first quarter of 2022.

Vemo offers Fleet-as-a-Service, Charging-as-a-Service, Driver-as-an-Employee, and Lease-to-Own. For its fleet services, which will no doubt be the destiny of the ordered electric cars, Vemo says it “invests in the assets and delivers the project ready to operate in exchange for a monthly fee, switching Capex to Opex, allowing clients to focus on their core business.”

Source: via Email, vemovilidad.com