Sources say BYD will suspend $1 billion of Indian investment plans.
CTOnews.com, July 28 (Reuters)-BYD has told its Indian joint venture partner that it will shelve plans to invest $1 billion (CTOnews.com Note: about 7.16 billion yuan) to build electric cars in India, according to Reuters.
▲ image source BYD official WeChat
CTOnews.com previously reported that BYD plans to form an electric vehicle joint venture with Hyderabad Mecca with a long-term goal of producing a full range of BYD electric vehicles in India, from hatchbacks to luxury cars.
But Indian officials have rejected the proposal, and the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Industry and Internal Trade Promotion (DPIIT) have consulted other departments on the investment proposal, according to the Economic Times of India. An Indian official said: "during the review process, people raised security concerns about Chinese investment in India."
BYD did not comment on the matter, but stressed that it had been operating in India for 16 years, including selling passenger cars and electric buses. India's Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of the Interior did not respond to requests for comment.
Sources said BYD had tried to allay concerns about its investment. For example, the proposal said that on BYD electric cars made in India, the voice-activated commands of the application would be provided in the Indian language, and all data on the vehicles would be stored in India. BYD also proposed that the Indian plant would start production in 2025.
