BYD receives major order from Octopus in the UK

Octopus Electric Vehicles wants to procure 5,000 electric cars from BYD for British customers over the next three years. The two companies have agreed on this as part of a memorandum of understanding.

Octopus Electric Vehicles, the eMobility provider of the energy supplier Octopus Energy, wants to make the BYD electric cars available to employees in the UK within the framework of a leasing programme via salary conversion (“Salary Sacrifice Scheme”). Octopus Electric Vehicles has been offering this salary sacrifice leasing scheme since April 2021, including vehicles from Tesla, Polestar and Jaguar.

The first model from the BYD framework agreement Octopus Electric Vehicles plans to order is the Atto 3, which launched in the UK market this month. It is not known how many Atto 3 Octopus will order in the first stage.

This is the most affordable model from the BYD trio that the manufacturer is launching in Europe. The Atto 3 is a compact SUV based on BYD’s own electric car platform ‘e-platform 3.0′. This is an 800-volt platform. The Atto 3 is 4.45 metres long and has a 150 kW electric motor on the front axle. The 60.5 kWh battery is said to be sufficient for 420 WLTP kilometres, and the storage can be filled from 30 to 80 per cent in 29 minutes.

According to BYD’s announcement, Octopus Electric Vehicles’ leasing offer will be “one of the most affordable ways” to lease a BYD car in the UK. “We are delighted to enter this cooperation with Octopus EV. This is an exciting new chapter for BYD as we bring our latest products and leading technologies to customers in the UK, as shown in our innovative range of electric passenger cars, starting with the BYD ATTO 3” said Michael Shu, General Manager and Managing Director, BYD Europe and International Cooperation Division.

Oliver Boots, Chief Commercial Officer of Octopus Electric Vehicles, added: “When Octopus Electric Vehicles launched, there were only a handful of EVs on the market – we’re now at more than 85 and the figure is rising all the time. Customers have an amazing range of models to choose from, all of which are at the cutting edge of tech and are fun to drive. Being able to partner with BYD as they launch in the UK is a real milestone.”

BYD previously also signed a similar but significantly larger framework agreement: In October 2022, BYD promised car rental company Sixt access to up to 100,000 electric cars within six years. The first Atto 3s from this cooperation are already on the road.

byd.com