Tesla has been knocked from its post as the world’s leading manufacturer of 100% battery electric vehicles (BEV) by Chinese car maker BYD. According to data from CleanTechnica, BYD produced 506,868 fully electric cars in the first half of this year, which is a market share of 15.6 percent. Tesla, by comparison, produced only 406,869 of the cars, making up 12.6 percent of the global comparison. The next leading brands are SAIC (8.6 percent), Volkswagen (7.8 percent), and Hyundai-Kia (5.8 percent).
Elon Musk’s company was forced to scale back its production line in May 2022 following lockdown-related supply chain issues in China. According to media reports, the Shanghai Gigafactory ran out of parts needed to make the electric cars, resulting in only 200 out of the usual 12,00 vehicles being produced per day, before it rolled to a stop altogether. Since BYD’s factories are mostly located in areas that were not affected by such extensive lockdown periods, they did not suffer the same setbacks, as reported by PCMag.
The breakthrough of lithium-ion on the roads is undeniable. Quarter after quarter, sales of electric vehicles continue to grow around the world, with more than 3 million units having been sold from January to May in 2022, compared to 1.7 million in the same period of 2021 (an increase of more than 80%). Knowing that the last months of the year are traditionally strong for sales, analysts estimate that the market should pass the milestone of 7 million cars delivered this year.
This chart shows the market share of BEV manufacturers in the first six months of 2022.
