The German rental company Sixt has ordered “thousands” of electric cars from the Chinese leader in the sector, the BYD group, the two companies announced in a press release on Tuesday, October 4.
Sixt will notably offer the BYD Atto 3 compact SUV to its customers in Germany, France, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands from the last quarter of 2022.
“Several thousand” BYD vehicles initially
“This cooperation starts with an order for several thousand BYD 100% electric cars” and Sixt “should complete this initial order with an additional 100,000 BYD electric vehicles” by 2028, the two groups said.
Sixt declined to be more specific about this first order, which follows announcements from several competitors. “We are in the process of defining the details” of this collaboration, a spokesman for the rental company told AFP. The rental company, however, specifies in a press release: “Sixt’s fleet in Europe will be 70-90% electrified by 2030, bringing together a wide range of manufacturers and models.”
Preparing for the gradual end of thermal cars, and to reduce their carbon footprint, rental companies have multiplied orders for electric cars: the American Hertz has reserved 100,000 Tesla, 65,000 Polestar and 175,000 cars from the GM group.
70% of the Sixt fleet electrified by 2030
Sixt, which has 242,000 cars in its fleet, aims to electrify 15% of its vehicles before the end of 2023, and at least 70% by 2030. In addition to BYD, Sixt also works with Renault, Peugeot and Opel, besides Tesla. Audi and BMW for its premium range.
BYD, for its part, has big ambitions for Europe, including a transition to all-electric that is planned for 2035. The Chinese group will be present at the Paris Motor Show in mid-October.
Already based in Norway, BYD, backed by Warren Buffett’s fund, has signed deals with dealers in several countries to distribute its Atto 3 small SUV, Tang large SUV and Han sedan.
Currently, rental companies also have significant supply problems. In the context of the semiconductor crisis, inventories are limited and manufacturers are favoring other, more profitable distribution channels. But with the risk of also losing good customers in volumes represented by rental companies.
Source: BFM TV
