BYD wins South Korean approval to enter market with BYD Atto 3

On January 13th, the South Korean Ministry of Environment granted BYD’s Atto 3 emissions and noise certifications. The certifications were issued by South Korea’s National Institute of Environmental Research. 

– Advertisement –

With this certification, the Atto 3 has completed all the necessary procedures for entering the South Korean market. Additional certification processes for BYD’s Seal, Dolphin, and Sealion 7 are also underway. 

The certification process aims to verify the performance of electric vehicles, such as driving range on a single charge. Results indicated that the Atto 3 has a range of 321 km per charge under normal conditions and 309 km under low temperature conditions.

– Advertisement –

BYD is expected to host a press conference on January 16th to officially announce its entry into the South Korean auto market. The BYD Atto 3 is expected to be priced at 35 million KRW (23,950 USD). For reference, in China, the BYD Atto 3 (known as the BYD Yuan Plus) sells for 119,800 yuan (16,650 USD) for the base model.

The Atto 3 is expected to be available to South Korean consumers in early February. Administrative procedures are continuing to take place to confirm if the car will qualify for existing EV subsidies offered. Despite qualifying for subsidies, the car is expected to receive lower government subsidies due to its lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery, which has a lower recycling rate. 

BYD is reported to be targeting annual sales of 10,000 units in South Korea. BYD Korea has already selected companies as distributors and plans to establish 15 passenger car sales outlets in cities including Seoul, Gyeonggi, Busan, and Jeju.

– Advertisement –

BYD enters a market dominated by Hyundai and Kia, but the company will likely compete more directly with other foreign brands like Tesla rather than local brands.

Sources: ITHome