BYD’s 7th car carrier launched

• The BYD car carrier can accommodate up to 7,000 vehicles.
• The vessel is the sister ship of BYD Hefei.

BYD (HKG: 1211, OTCMKTS: BYDDY) is about to welcome a new member to its fleet of car carriers, as the Chinese new energy vehicle (NEV) maker increases its maritime capacity.

BYDY’s seventh car carrier, which was built by Guangzhou Shipyard International Company Limited (GSI), was launched, the semi-official Weibo account @小迪快报 said today.

The Weibo post did not mention the name of the vessel, but said it is a sister ship of the BYD Hefei.

The LNG dual-fuel car carrier is 199.9 meters long and has a beam of 38 meters, according to the Weibo.

Separately, according to a GSI announcement yesterday, the BYD car carrier can accommodate up to 7,000 vehicles.

It has a design draft of 9 meters and a design speed of 18.5 knots, according to GSI.

The BYD Explorer No. 1 is the first vessel in BYD’s fleet with a capacity of 7,000 vehicles. The vessel, which entered service in January 2024, was chartered to BYD by another ship owner.

BYD Hefei is BYD’s first car carrier as a shipowner and the first to be named after the city where one of its vehicle production bases is located, with a capacity of 7,000 vehicles.

BYD Hefei completed construction at the end of September 2024 and began its maiden voyage on January 7 of this year, sailing to Europe with nearly 5,000 new energy vehicles (NEVs).

BYD Changzhou, launched in October 2024, is the second BYD vessel named after a vehicle production base after BYD Hefei.

The 7,000-vehicle-capable BYD Changzhou went into service in December 2024, with its maiden voyage carrying 5,000 NEVs to Europe.

BYD Shenzhen, BYD’s fourth car carrier with a capacity of 9,200 vehicles, is the world’s largest roll-on roll-off ship for cars and completed its undocking on January 15.

BYD Changsha is the fifth in BYD’s fleet and its second car carrier with a capacity of 9,200 vehicles.

On March 17, the company said the BYD Changsha car carrier would be launched soon.

BYD Xi’an, BYD’s 6th car carrier, was officially launched on April 2.