BYD is deploying ships now?
The Chinese OEMs are investing in maritime fleet to support overseas growth.
As you read this, I’ve just arrived in Mongolia for a two-week journey through the steppes: a mix of horse trekking, hiking, and camel riding. During this time, I’ll be mostly off the grid with limited or no internet access. As a result, The Battery Chronicle will pause next week. The next edition will be published on June 15th. This also means that I won’t be present at The Battery Show Europe. I hope you will enjoy the article below.
Summary
Chinese EV Makers Deploy Their Own Shipping Fleets to Power Global Expansion.
Battery Industry Pulse: Weekly Roundup.
Welcome back to another edition of my newsletter! - Week 22 2025
China’s electric vehicle industry is entering a new phase of global expansion, and the latest battleground is the sea. To support their growing presence in international markets, major Chinese automakers are now deploying their own fleets of maritime car ro-ro (roll-on/roll-off) ship.
This approach is about more than solving logistics delays. It reflects a broader strategy to control infrastructure, lower costs, and protect global operations from external bottlenecks.
This shift marks a strategic evolution in how China’s automakers manage exports and could redefine global automotive logistics.
Manufacturers like BYD, SAIC, and Geely are responding to two converging pressures. At home, price wars and overcapacity have squeezed margins. Abroad, demand is growing across Europe, Latin America, Southeast Asia, and Australia.
For these companies, controlling maritime transport is a way to unlock new markets and stay competitive on a global scale.
Strategic Evolution, Not a Novel Concept
The idea of automaker-owned maritime logistics is not new.
Japanese manufacturers such as Toyota and Nissan began developing their own shipping capacity as early as the 1960s. Today, Toyota operates Toyofuji Shipping, and Nissan holds a majority stake in Nissan Motor Car Carrier (NMCC). These fleets allowed Japanese OEMs to support global exports during their international rise.
Hyundai Group joined them in early 2000 with Hyundai Glovis, specialised in maritime transport. Since last September, they signed an MoU with BYD to cooperate on logistics and finished vehicle maritime transportation.
Chinese automakers are scaling the model at unprecedented speed. Unlike their Japanese predecessors, they are deploying larger fleets on compressed timelines. It’s driven not just by opportunity, but by urgent global logistics challenges. What was once a strategic advantage is fast becoming a competitive necessity.
Chinese Ship Launches: Fleet by Fleet
In 2024 and early 2025, China’s top EV exporters ramped up investments in shipbuilding and ocean freight logistics to match the scale of their international ambitions.
BYD sold 417,204 new energy vehicles overseas in 2024, a 71.86 percent increase year-on-year. They support this growth with a rapidly expanding fleet of specialized car carriers. Starting with the chartered BYD Explorer No.1 in January 2024, the company quickly transitioned to owning and operating its own vessels.
As of May 2025, BYD’s fleet includes:
BYD Explorer No.1 – 7,000 capacity
BYD Hefei – 7,000 capacity, maiden voyage January 2025
BYD Changzhou – 7,000 capacity, launched October 2024
BYD Shenzhen – 9,200 capacity, maiden voyage April 27, 2025 to Brazil
BYD Changsha – second 9,200-capacity vessel, launch pending
BYD Xi’an – launched April 2, 2025.
BYD targets to export 800,000 EVs in 2025, resulting potential increase of 100%.
SAIC exported over 1.21 million vehicles in 2024, with most of its EVs sales through its MG brand. Its logistics arm, Anji Logistics, has emerged as a maritime powerhouse. On May 22, 2025, SAIC launched the Anji Ansheng, the world’s largest car ro-ro (roll-on/roll-off) ship, with space for 9,500 vehicles. The vessel sailed to Europe with 7,000 NEVs aboard, surpassing BYD’s Shenzhen in capacity.
Executives at SAIC Anji Logistics mentioned that this vessel is just the beginning. The company plans to put seven more super-large car ro-ro ship into operation soon, aiming to cover more than 100 destinations worldwide, including Western Europe, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Mexico.
Geely, another major player in China’s automotive sector, has joined the shipping race with its first self-operated ro-ro ship. On May 22, 2025, JISU Logistics (Geely’s logistics subsidiary) launched the JISU FORTUNE, a 199.9-meter-long vessel with 7,000-vehicle capacity, from Suzhou Port’s Taicang terminal. The maiden voyage carried over 5,000 Chinese-made vehicles to the UK, Netherlands, and Belgium.
In April 2025 alone, Geely exported 24,133 vehicles, bringing its four-month total to 114,086 units, according to company disclosures. They expect this maritime investment to support further acceleration of its global delivery capabilities.
These initiatives reflect a clear trend: Chinese automakers are no longer content to rely on third-party shippers dominated by Japanese and Korean firms. They are deploying their own global logistics pipelines to control costs, improve delivery precision, and scale their global operations without constraint.
Global Strategy Beyond Europe
The shipping expansion is closely tied to China’s broader EV export strategy.
In 2023, China overtook Japan to become the world’s largest car exporter. In 2024, Chinese vehicle exports increased by 19.3% to 5.86 million vehicles. Nearly 1.3 million were NEV (+7%), including 987,000 all-electric cars (BEV), led by brands like BYD, Chery, MG (owned by SAIC), and Geely.
Chinese automakers are targeting diverse markets, not just Europe.
The OEMs like BYD and Geely are rapidly expanding in Latin America and Southeast Asia, driven by strong consumer demand and supportive policies. Australia's open market and high EV adoption rates make it an attractive destination for Chinese EV exports.
These markets offer more than sales volume. They offer margins. With domestic EV prices under intense downward pressure, exports allow companies to protect profits, diversify demand, and stabilize factory utilization.
The bottom line is clear. Control over transportation is becoming as critical as control over batteries and software. In the race to lead the global EV market, Chinese automakers are securing every link in the chain: manufacturing, technology, and now, the open sea.
In a highly competitive global market, control over maritime transport is proving to be one of the most powerful levers for growth.
Quick favor: Please take 2 minutes to share your biggest industry challenges. Your input helps me create more useful insights beyond this newsletter. Thank you !
Now, let’s look at this week's battery market developments.
Battery Industry Pulse: Weekly Roundup
Battery
CATL and Dongfeng Nissan partner on battery tech R&D, market expansion
LG Energy Solution Wins Battery Patent Lawsuit Against China’s Sunwoda in Germany
Samsung SDI to supply prismatic batteries for Kia’s next-gen EV
LG Energy, Samsung SDI to build 1st US LFP battery plants with GM
Samsung SDI to apply top tab structure on new prismatic batteries.
Youlchon settles 1.5 trillion won contract cancellation with Ultium Cells.
Factorial Ships First Solid-State Battery Cells to Avidrone Aerospace for Drone Deployment
Amprius Announces Strategic Manufacturing Partnership in South Korea to Support Global Demand.
CATL Achieves Breakthrough in Lithium Metal Battery Research, Published in Nature Nanotechnology
Other applications
Passengers Cars
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# Questions on China's EV Market Consolidation
I've been thinking about the Chinese electric vehicle landscape and have some questions that I'd love to get perspectives on from those more knowledgeable about this sector.
Can you give me a breakdown of the financial positions of the top ten EV manufacturers in China? From what I understand, there are almost 90 EV manufacturers currently operating in the market, with many of them propped up by local government subsidies.
I'm particularly curious about the consolidation dynamics at play. Are there any mergers and acquisitions going on in this sector? If so, are these mergers being conducted privately through market forces, or are they being pushed together by the government in what might resemble shotgun marriage situations?
Looking ahead, how many Chinese EV brands do you expect to still be in the market by 2030-35? The current number seems unsustainable given the competitive pressures and market realities.
On the international front, do you see any foreign companies acquiring Chinese brands? I remember hearing about some activity along these lines a few years ago, but I'm not sure how that landscape has evolved.
Finally, there's the question of government intervention for struggling players. Do you think the Chinese government will bail out any of the EV brands that are heavily indebted, or are they going to let market forces play out and allow them to fail?
These dynamics seem crucial for understanding not just the future of China's domestic market, but also how Chinese EV companies will compete globally in the coming decade.
@glennluk has done that profit breakdown on X and perhaps on his Substack