Catenaa, Tuesday, March 18, 2025- The shares of Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD jumped to a record on Tuesday, passing the $162 billion market value, after the company unveiled a line-up of electric vehicles that can charge in five minutes.
BYD’s stock climbed as much as 4.36% by 3,30 in the afternoon in Hong Kong, lifting its market value to $162.28 billion — more than Ford Motor Co., General Motors Co., and Volkswagen AG combined.
BYD Chairman and founder Wang Chuanfu said on Monday, that its new battery and charging system was capable of providing around 400 kilometers (249 miles) of range in 5 minutes in tests on its new Han L sedan.
The manufacturer will start selling vehicles with the new technology next month.
The new platform, which will underpin many of its future electric vehicles, could provide another boost for BYD, which has come from behind to rival Tesla Inc. as the world’s top EV seller.
Tesla’s China shipments plunged 49% in February from a year earlier to just 30,688 vehicles, the lowest monthly figure since in July 2022.
BYD has committed to building more than 4,000 charging stations across China to serve the newly upgraded EVs. It didn’t disclose a specific timeline or cost to complete the rollout. However, the company earlier this month raised around $5.6 billion in a share sale.
The speeds would be comfortably ahead of Tesla’s Superchargers, which can add up to 275 kilometers of range in 15 minutes. Tesla, however, has a much larger network of more than 65,000 Superchargers worldwide
Wang said BYD’s new EV platform will allow cars to reach a speed of 100 kilometers per hour in 2 seconds.
The first models to get the ultra-fast charging will be the Han L and the Tang L sport utility vehicle. They’ll start at 270,000 yuan ($37,338) and 280,000 yuan, respectively, and will be sold from April. BYD will build more than 4,000 charging stations designed to accommodate the new technology.
BYD has had a stellar start to 2025. The company, which only makes hybrid and fully electric cars, sold more than 318,000 passenger vehicles last month, up 161% from a year earlier. It’s the top carmaker in China, the world’s biggest auto market, with a share approaching 15%.
