Chinese carmaker BYD is partnering with leasing and mobility giant Ayvens to drive take-up of its electric cars and LCVs in Europe.

Tim Albertsen, group CEO of Ayvens, and Stella Li, executive vice president of BYD

The two firms have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to work together on funding and other services for corporate and retail customers in Europe.

The pact includes a cluster of tailored electric vehicle fleet solutions for international and local corporate clients at Ayvens – formerly ALD Automotive | LeasePlan. These range from advisory services and operational leases through to end-to-end charging services for BYD’s full range of electric vehicles.

The plans will also take care of SME and private individuals by providing white-labelled full-service leasing services through BYD’s dealer network. Operational leasing services are initially available in France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg and likely to expand to other European markets.

Ayvens and BYD will actively explore more opportunities within retail, further developing white label operational lease cooperations to help drive the switch to EVs within Europe.

The two companies will also work to enhance collaboration through training programmes and knowledge-sharing initiatives, further driving improvement and innovation around ‘new energy’ plug-in hybrid and fully electric vehicles and battery technology.

The deal will help expand the availability of electric vehicles in Europe. BYD has sold more than 7.6 million new energy vehicles – including plug-in hybrids – to date and overtook Tesla as the world’s top-selling fully electric battery electric maker in the last quarter of 2023.

Its innovations include the Blade Battery, claimed to be safer and more efficient than typical electric vehicle batteries, and its Super DM (dual-mode) plug-in hybrid technology that’s said to offer enhanced energy efficiency, low fuel consumption, drive performance and comfort.

In Europe, the brand has already launched seven new models – including the fully electric Tang seven-seater performance SUV, Han saloon, Atto 3 compact SUV, Dolphin hatch, Seal saloon and Seal U SUV, along with the Seal U DM-I PHEV SUV.

BYD’s agreement with Avyens was signed by Tim Albertsen, group CEO of Ayvens, and Stella Li, executive vice president of BYD, in the presence of Wang Chuanfu, chairman and president of BYD Company and other representatives from both companies.

BYD’s Wang Chuanfu said: “Our cooperation with Ayvens reflects our mutual vision to accelerate the development of NEV markets in Europe. Together we offer diverse, accessible and appealing products with pioneering innovation to incentivise the advancement of eco-friendly lease fleets. Globally, BYD innovation in sustainable technology is inspiring the future of mobility and delivering exceptional EV experiences, while fulfilling goals to help reduce carbon emissions.”

Tim Albertsen, group CEO of Ayvens, remarked: “With BYD, we share a common commitment to promoting environmentally friendly transportation for a more sustainable world. BYD is clearly at the forefront in new energy vehicle development, and we are pleased to be joining forces with them to expand the availability of electric vehicles in Europe, as well as working together to further innovate around electric vehicles and battery technology.”

The deal comes just days after Arval UK announced a similar deal for Chinese carmakers Omoda and Jaecoo.

BYD Trucks Europe, part of BYD, has also signed a telematics deal with Geotab. The agreement will see BYD’s electric trucks imported to Europe equipped with Geotab’s telematics hardware that captures comprehensive vehicle data. This data, with customer agreement, will be used by BYD Trucks Europe to enhance vehicle quality, maintenance and service management, helping to minimise both planned and unplanned downtime. Transport companies will also benefit from vehicle data insights for improved efficiency, operations, cost management and fleet sustainability.