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Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD plans to triple its dealerships in South Africa by next year to take advantage of growing EV adoption in Africa’s largest economy.
The company wants to increase its footprint to up to 35 dealerships to ensure South African consumers “can catch up with the rest of the world,” BYD’s top country executive told Reuters. BYD entered South Africa in June 2023 with its Atto 3 SUV that retails locally for about $37,000, and launched three new models in South Africa in April this year.
Annual sales of EVs — both fully electric and hybrids — in South Africa rose from a little over 400 to more than 7,700 units between 2019 and 2023, according to the Automotive Business Council, an industry trade group. Overall, sales of new cars rose by 22% year-on-year in May to 45,308 units, with dealerships accounting for at least eight in 10 sales. The car market has been “buoyed by relatively stable economic fundamentals earlier in the year,” the ABC said.
