BYD, Weichai Power plan to build battery R&D, manufacturing base

Shanghai (Gasgoo)- On May 12, BYD and Weichai Power, a Chinese leading combustion engine developer and manufacturer, signed a strategic cooperation agreement in Shenzhen, according to a post on Weichai's WeChat account.

Under the agreement, the two parties plan to leverage their respective advantages to establish a more comprehensive and in-depth strategic partnership in the field of new energy vehicle (NEV), co-produce power batteries in Shandong through a joint venture, and build a power battery research and manufacturing base.

Photo credit: Weichai Power

The newly formed partnership is expected to continuously strengthen the NEV industry chain, innovation chain, and value chain, and making positive contributions to promoting the industrialization and development of new energy commercial vehicles in China, said Weichai.

Since 2010, Weichai Power has set the strategic goal of leading the global industry development in NEV businesses by 2030 with over 4 billion yuan poured so far. It has already completed strategic investment in Ballard Power and Ceres Power and became the largest shareholder of the both companies, which are global leaders in PEMFC (Proton exchange membrane fuel cell) and SOFC (solid oxide fuel cell) solutions respectively.

In addition, in 2021, WEICHAI Power acquired a stake in FISCHER Fuel Cell Compressor AG (“FFCC”), a Switzerland-headquartered technology leader of air compressors for fuel cell technology. In the same year, the two companies founded a joint venture in China called FISCHER WEICHAI (Weifang) Fuel Cell Compressor.

As a Chinese leading NEV manufacturer, BYD has launched a slew of cutting-edge technologies, such as the Blade Battery, the DM-i super hybrid system, and the CTB (cell-to-body) technology.