Chinese Automaker Promising Revolution in Brazil Finally Inaugurates Its Colossal R$ 5.5 Billion Factory Expected to Create 20,000 Jobs; Lula Attended BYD Inauguration

Written by Alisson Ficher

Published on 10/10/2025 at 17:18

Updated on 10/10/2025 at 17:59

BYD inaugura megafábrica de R$ 5,5 bilhões em Camaçari (BA), promete 20 mil empregos e impulsiona a produção de carros elétricos no Brasil.

2 people reacted to this.

BYD Opened Its First Plant for Electric and Hybrid Vehicles in the Northeast, Reactivating the Old Ford Complex in Camaçari (BA) with Billion-Dollar Investment, Focus on Clean Energy and Promise to Boost the Brazilian Automotive Industry.

A BYD inaugurated, on Thursday (9), its factory in Camaçari (BA), marking the beginning of local production of electric and hybrid vehicles.

The complex received R$ 5.5 billion and has the potential to generate 20 thousand direct and indirect jobs when fully operational.

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, president of the Republic, attended the ceremony alongside the company’s founder, Wang Chuanfu.

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW

What Was Inaugurated

The new unit starts operating in assembly mode, focusing on electrified models, and was presented by the federal government as a strategic step for reindustrialization and energy transition in the country.

According to the federal administration, the complex is identified as the largest manufacturer outside of Asia.

Where the Plant Is Located and What Has Changed on the Old Ford Site

Located at the address that housed Ford, BYD occupies the space that has been inactive since January 2021, when the American automaker ended production in Brazil.

The adaptation works for the new factory began in March 2024 and included upgrading facilities for electrified vehicles.

The complex received I-REC certification, which attests to the use of 100% electricity from clean and renewable sources.

Capacity and Production Stages

The plant opens with an initial capacity of 150 thousand vehicles per year, aiming to reach 300 thousand in the second phase.

Initially, the operation is SKD (Semi Knocked-Down), with assembly from imported sets.

The company plans to increase local content starting in 2026, when stamping, welding, and painting will be added.

Specialized publications report that nationalization will occur progressively throughout 2026.

Jobs and Impact on the Automotive Supply Chain

The government projects 20 thousand jobs between direct and indirect positions when the park is fully operational, totaling employees, contractors, and suppliers.

In the first weeks of operation, the official schedule provides for the gradual expansion of the workforce, with ongoing hiring.

Technology Developed for Brazil

During the ceremony, the company presented the world’s first flex plug-in hybrid, capable of running on any ratio of ethanol and gasoline, in addition to the rechargeable battery.

The system, according to BYD and the government, was developed in collaboration between Brazilian and Chinese engineers to meet the conditions of the national market.

What Lula Said at the Inauguration

In his speech, Lula praised Wang Chuanfu and linked the inauguration to the company’s confidence in the country.

The president stated: “This man managed to become a genius of the electric car, a genius of the most advanced technology in the world, and builds this extraordinary factory and shows trust in Brazil.”

In conclusion, he expressed his gratitude: “So, my thanks, I want you to know that the Brazilian people and the people of Bahia appreciate your willingness.”

Sustainability and Use of Clean Energy

The I-REC certification obtained by the Bahia complex confirms that all electricity consumed in the operation is from renewable sources, aligning the plant with commitments to decarbonize the automotive supply chain.

This seal is used to track the source of energy and has an accredited issuer in Brazil.

Timeline and Industrial Maturation

Official reports and specialized press indicate that national production begins with assembly of imported kits and evolves to complete processes as new lines come online.

State authorities and the company itself project that the factory will be fully operational by the end of 2026, after adjustments to the schedule.

The October inauguration confirms the start of industrial operations and maintains the goal of increasing local content over the next year.

Other BYD Operations in Brazil

In addition to Bahia, the company maintains units in Campinas (SP) and Manaus (AM), active for nearly a decade in the country.

In these units, it produces electric bus chassis, photovoltaic modules, and battery packs.

The brand’s industrial presence in Brazil began in 2015 and has been expanded since then, which supports the integration with the new plant in Camaçari.

Chinese Automaker Promising Revolution in Brazil Finally Inaugurates Its Colossal R$ 5.5 Billion Factory Expected to Create 20,000 Jobs; Lula Attended BYD Inauguration

BYD Opened Its First Plant for Electric and Hybrid Vehicles in the Northeast, Reactivating the Old Ford Complex in Camaçari (BA) with Billion-Dollar Investment, Focus on Clean Energy and Promise to Boost the Brazilian Automotive Industry.

What Was Inaugurated

Where the Plant Is Located and What Has Changed on the Old Ford Site

Capacity and Production Stages

Jobs and Impact on the Automotive Supply Chain

Technology Developed for Brazil

What Lula Said at the Inauguration

Sustainability and Use of Clean Energy

Timeline and Industrial Maturation

Other BYD Operations in Brazil

With billions in loans, China is rebuilding Nigeria’s railway network from scratch, abandoning the British colonial tracks that have turned to scrap and creating a corridor of over 1,300 km to take the load off the roads of Africa’s largest economy.

Forget petroleum-based asphalt: a Scottish company transforms 684,000 plastic bottles into one kilometer of road that is 60% more resistant and up to 10 times more durable, and the technology has already started replacing traditional asphalt in more than 30 countries.

Austrian engineers have developed an inflatable concrete technology that transforms flat slabs into domes using only air pressure, eliminating scaffolding and temporary forms, and potentially changing the way bridges, tunnels, and curved roofs are constructed worldwide.

Australia prepares to dredge 96.5 million m³ in Moreton Bay to deepen, widen, and realign channels of the Port of Brisbane, in a project of up to 25 years designed to accommodate larger ships and enhance maritime safety and regional port efficiency.

A robot named Walter does the work of five bricklayers per hour and can save the construction industry, where the average age of professionals is 46 years and almost no one wants to learn the trade anymore, in the United Kingdom.

Spain installs two giant pipelines 2.2 km off the coast to draw water from the Mediterranean and supply a megafacility capable of producing 200 million liters of drinking water per day.

Without wheels, iron, or machines, teams of up to 32 men would have dragged 2.3-ton blocks over wet sand up a ramp embedded in the pyramid itself, raising the structure in 20 to 27 years, according to a new computer model that reignites a millennia-old debate.

End of bricklayers laying brick by brick: robot places more than 2,000 bricks per day, automatically applies cement, works with only one human operator next to the machine, and transforms traditional masonry into a high-speed semi-automated operation.

In Japan, a 40 by 60-meter concrete museum without pillars rises like a floating drop, allowing wind, light, and rain inside the space and surprising architects and engineers with the delicacy of the structure.

The sea has stopped just warming and has started pushing storms towards the continent: marine heatwaves are already entering the path of up to 25% of extreme coastal rains and can increase storms by 30%, worsening floods on the coast.

While traditional constructions rely on tons of concrete to support weight, in England an abandoned site was converted into transparent hexagonal domes, combining lightweight engineering and mine repurposing, transforming the landscape and local tourism.

The bridge that collapsed in seconds after being hit by a ship in Baltimore will be reborn as a cable-stayed bridge: Maryland signed $4.8 billion in four contracts for a 508-meter span specifically designed to withstand the impact of a giant cargo ship.

Chinese Automaker Promising Revolution in Brazil Finally Inaugurates Its Colossal R$ 5.5 Billion Factory Expected to Create 20,000 Jobs; Lula Attended BYD Inauguration

BYD Opened Its First Plant for Electric and Hybrid Vehicles in the Northeast, Reactivating the Old Ford Complex in Camaçari (BA) with Billion-Dollar Investment, Focus on Clean Energy and Promise to Boost the Brazilian Automotive Industry.

What Was Inaugurated

Where the Plant Is Located and What Has Changed on the Old Ford Site

Capacity and Production Stages

Jobs and Impact on the Automotive Supply Chain

Technology Developed for Brazil

What Lula Said at the Inauguration

Sustainability and Use of Clean Energy

Timeline and Industrial Maturation

Other BYD Operations in Brazil

With billions in loans, China is rebuilding Nigeria’s railway network from scratch, abandoning the British colonial tracks that have turned to scrap and creating a corridor of over 1,300 km to take the load off the roads of Africa’s largest economy.

Forget petroleum-based asphalt: a Scottish company transforms 684,000 plastic bottles into one kilometer of road that is 60% more resistant and up to 10 times more durable, and the technology has already started replacing traditional asphalt in more than 30 countries.

Austrian engineers have developed an inflatable concrete technology that transforms flat slabs into domes using only air pressure, eliminating scaffolding and temporary forms, and potentially changing the way bridges, tunnels, and curved roofs are constructed worldwide.

Australia prepares to dredge 96.5 million m³ in Moreton Bay to deepen, widen, and realign channels of the Port of Brisbane, in a project of up to 25 years designed to accommodate larger ships and enhance maritime safety and regional port efficiency.

A robot named Walter does the work of five bricklayers per hour and can save the construction industry, where the average age of professionals is 46 years and almost no one wants to learn the trade anymore, in the United Kingdom.

Spain installs two giant pipelines 2.2 km off the coast to draw water from the Mediterranean and supply a megafacility capable of producing 200 million liters of drinking water per day.

Without wheels, iron, or machines, teams of up to 32 men would have dragged 2.3-ton blocks over wet sand up a ramp embedded in the pyramid itself, raising the structure in 20 to 27 years, according to a new computer model that reignites a millennia-old debate.

Goodbye, old refrigerator: Consul teams up with Brastemp to remove the appliance from your home and even offers a discount on the new model

Stopped cargo is costly: Single Window can reduce R$ 40 billion per year and change the game of exports in Brazil

USA to Pay New Residents: Town with Fewer than 900 Inhabitants Offers Up to $50,000 for Purchase of New Homes, Properties up to 119 m², and Ambitious Plan to Attract Families and Prevent Rural Depopulation in Nebraska

Reduction of working hours to 40 hours could cost R$ 77 billion to the GDP, raise food prices, and put up to 2.7 million jobs at risk, data indicates.

Supermarket giant buys 12 stores, Distribution Center, and two chains and accelerates expansion

End of bricklayers laying brick by brick: robot places more than 2,000 bricks per day, automatically applies cement, works with only one human operator next to the machine, and transforms traditional masonry into a high-speed semi-automated operation.

In Japan, a 40 by 60-meter concrete museum without pillars rises like a floating drop, allowing wind, light, and rain inside the space and surprising architects and engineers with the delicacy of the structure.

The sea has stopped just warming and has started pushing storms towards the continent: marine heatwaves are already entering the path of up to 25% of extreme coastal rains and can increase storms by 30%, worsening floods on the coast.

While traditional constructions rely on tons of concrete to support weight, in England an abandoned site was converted into transparent hexagonal domes, combining lightweight engineering and mine repurposing, transforming the landscape and local tourism.

The bridge that collapsed in seconds after being hit by a ship in Baltimore will be reborn as a cable-stayed bridge: Maryland signed $4.8 billion in four contracts for a 508-meter span specifically designed to withstand the impact of a giant cargo ship.