BYD announces plans for lithium mine and battery production in Yichun
BYD plans to invest 28.5 billion yuan (4.1 billion euros) in a battery factory and mining project in Yichun in China’s Jiangxi province. This is provided for in a framework agreement now signed with the city government.
The battery factory is to be designed for an annual capacity of 30 GWh. The mining project will enable BYD to produce 100,000 tonnes of lithium annually. There is no further information on the timetable so far.
According to an analysis by the market research company SNE Research, BYD was already the world’s third-largest manufacturer of EV batteries in the first half of 2022, with 24.0 GWh of battery cells produced. With the new plant in Yichun and the recently commissioned plant in Shaoxing, BYD is further expanding its market position.
BYD primarily uses LFP batteries produced in-house in its battery-electric cars, plug-in hybrids and electric buses. Meanwhile, battery production exceeds BYD’s own needs, so BYD also supplies its blade battery to other carmakers. The most famous customer is Tesla, which will install BYD cells in the Giga Berlin in Grünheide, according to recent reports.
The project makes BYD the third battery manufacturer to produce or plan to produce in Yichun, after industry giant CATL and Gotion High-Tech. For CATL, too, the Yichun project includes not only battery production but also on-site raw material mining. In April, CATL had acquired mining rights for a lithium mine.
In terms of planned capacity at Yichun, BYD is between CATL and Gotion. The agreement between the city government and CATL provides for up to 50 GWh, while the Gotion plant, which went into operation on 30 May, has a capacity of ten GWh. However, Gotion also wants to expand to up to 30 GWh.
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