Chinese carmaker BYD, the world’s largest electric-vehicle (EV) maker by sales, will spend 8 billion yuan on a new battery plant in Zhengzhou, the capital of central Henan province.

The constructions plans of a battery plant by Zhengzhou FinDreams Battery, a wholly-owned unit of BYD, were revealed by a notice for an environmental-assessment report.

The plant will cover an area of 1.15 million square metres in Zhengzhou, and its production capacity could reach 40 gigawatt hours (Gwh) upon completion, according to the notice. Total investment could amount to 8 billion yuan. BYD did not respond to a request for comment.

The Hong Kong and Shenzhen-listed carmaker more than tripled its sales last year to 1.86 million vehicles, most of them in China. It also unseated Tesla as the world’s largest EV vendor in 2022. The US carmaker delivered about 1.31 million EVs last year, falling short of its 1.4 million unit target.

Sales of new-energy vehicles, which include pure battery EVs and plug-in hybrids, fell 6.3 per cent in January after recording blistering growth of 90 percent in 2022, the China Passenger Car Association said.

Seagull, BYD’s new compact EV, is expected to debut at the 2023 Shanghai Auto Show in April. While its final price has not been disclosed yet, it is expected to be priced below 100,000 yuan.

Founded by Chinese billionaire Wang Chuanfu in 1995, BYD has been making vehicles since 2003. It mainly sells cars in mainland China, but is looking to become a global player with plans to expand in some overseas markets.

The company’s blade lithium iron phosphate battery packs have also proved to be very successful. Their battery cells are arranged in a manner that increases energy density while enhancing resistance to overheating. BYD supplies these blade batteries to Tesla’s factory in Berlin.

BYD’s battery installation levels in 2022 matched that of LG Energy Solution, which is the world’s second-largest battery maker after China’s CATL, according to South Korea-based SNE Research. BYD’s battery installation level grew 167 per cent year on year in 2022 to 70.4 gwh.