BYD to expand South Africa dealerships

From the newsletter

BYD plans to increase its dealer network in South Africa from 5 to 25 by the end of 2025. The automaker currently operates sales and services outlets in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town, Durban, East London, Gqeberha, uMhlanga and Ballito. The company also plans to increase its new electric vehicle portfolio in South Africa from 6 to 11.

•  BYD operates in a number of African countries, including Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa, Zambia, Madagascar, and Ethiopia. 

• The company’s models that are currently on sale in the country are Dolphin Standard Range, Dolphin Extended Range and Atto 3 Extended Range. It is also selling Atto 3 Standard Range, Seal Extended Range and Seal AWD Performance. 

More details

• South Africa is one of BYD’s largest markets in Africa. In 2024, BYD got an order of 120 65-seat electric buses from Golden Arrow, a 163-year-old premier operator in South Africa. BYD has sold more than 80,000 electric buses worldwide.

• The automaker launched in South Africa in 2023 with a single fully-electric crossover called the Atto 3. The official price of the model was tagged at $41,384 (standard range) and $45,000 (extended range). The Chinese automaker considers South Africa as one of its main markets on the continent.

• However, competition in the South African EV market is stiff. Another Chinese automaker Dongfeng also recently launched in South Africa with an initial line-up of three models, two being fully electric. The country also hosts top electric car manufacturers including BMW, Mercedez Benz, Audi AG, Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, Daimler AG, Toyota Motor Corporation and Volvo Car AB.

• South Africa is the main automotive manufacturing hub in Africa. It is a leading market for EVs in Africa, with over 14,000 New Energy Vehicles (NEVs) sold in 2024. This marks a growth of more than 34 times from 407 NEVs sold in 2019. 

• The proportion of EVs in South Africa remains tiny. In 2023, 532,098 vehicles were sold in the country. Cars are still the most sold, but the increase in demand is fastest for heavy trucks and buses. As shown in the previous paragraph, the share of EVs is less than 1% of South Africa’s annual vehicle sales.

Our take

• Load shedding is a major issue in South Africa. It means that EV users have a limited time to charge their vehicles. However, the situation has improved in recent months. As of this week, Eskom has now gone 300 days without load shedding. This is a welcome development that augurs well for EV users. But can Eskom sustain the momentum? South Africa’s e-mobility stakeholders are counting on Eskom to keep the lights on at all times.  

• Starting 2026, companies investing in electric vehicle production will claim a 150% tax deduction on such investments. These incentives are key to growing the country’s EV sector. South Africa is also the world’s sixth‑largest supplier of raw materials for lithium‑ion battery manufacturing; and has the world’s largest manganese reserves, along with a growing supply of nickel. These are critical minerals for battery production.

• South Africa has a population of more than 60 million people and continues to grow rapidly. Demand for EVs will continue to rise in the coming years. But prices of EVs in South Africa range from around R399,900 to over R1,200,000, which is way higher than ICE vehicles. The high prices have been the sticking point for many buyers who want to switch to EVs. Electric automakers need to get the pricing dynamics right to capture the market.