China’s largest electric vehicle manufacturer, BYD, has halted production of internal combustion engine-powered vehicles that are dangerous to the planet, Reuters reported.
BYD has said that as of March 2022, it will stop producing cars exclusively with internal combustion engines in favor of hybrid vehicles and electric cars.
The company will continue to use gasoline engines, but only in hybrid models, which are also equipped with an electric motor. BYD said it would continue to provide end-to-end services and parts throughout the vehicle’s life cycle for owners of ICE-only vehicles.
The auto giant decided in response to a pledge by the Chinese authorities to increase the consumption of clean energy fuels to reach the peak of carbon dioxide emissions by 2030.
Along with Volvo, Ford, General Motors, Mercedes-Benz, and Jaguar Land Rover, BYD is committed to phasing out combustion engine vehicles by 2040.
In March 2022, BYD sold almost 104.9 thousand new energy vehicles.
A year earlier, this figure was 24.2 thousand cars. In addition, BYD sold 53.7 thousand electric cars and 50.7 thousand hybrid cars. March sales were the highest in the history of the company.
Earlier in March, automaker Suzuki Motor announced its intention to invest $1.3 billion in producing electric cars and batteries for them at its factory in India. The project will be Suzuki’s first central electric vehicle production plan.