BYD Toyota teamed up to develop battery electric vehicles

KUALA LUMPUR: In November last year, the Japanese carmaker Toyota and Chinese electric car producer BYD signed an agreement for the formation of a joint venture company intending to conduct research and development of battery electric vehicles. And now, the registration of the new company has been done with the name BYD TOYOTA EV Technology Co. Ltd. (BTET). The operations are scheduled to start on May 20. Hirohisa Kishi from Toyota will be headed the company as chairman, while Zhao Binggen from BYD will be the chief executive officer.

In this context, Hirohisa Kishi, the new chairman quoted, "With the engineers from BYD and Toyota working together under the same roof, we aim to develop BEVs that are superior in performance and meet the needs of customers in China by merging the two companies' strengths and also through friendly rivalry."

While the newly appointed CEO Zhao Bingen said, "This joint venture company will focus on the research and development of battery electric vehicles with technology and know-how from both China and Japan. The company is committed to promoting and populating high-quality technologies that make battery electric vehicles more environmentally friendly, safe, comfortable, and intelligent. Our vision is to create a future customer-first mobility style and a harmonious society for humans and nature."

The firms will work on the mission of promoting the widespread adoption of battery electric vehicles. And, also hope to make a contribution towards improving the environment in China. The companies would each invest 50% of the required capital; however, the value of the venture has not been disclosed. The enterprise tends to produce vehicles that individually run on batteries, not like PHEV or petrol-electric, which contains the combustion engine also.

Being a latecomer in the battery EV segment, Toyota planned to get half its global sales from electric vehicles, including petrol hybrids by 2025. The firm also manufactures hydrogen fuel-cell cars with Chinese partners.

Also read: A sneak-peek at Toyota’s upcoming vehicle timeline