The laboratory located in Campinas (SP) will be key to BYD's goal of fostering the development of the solar energy sector in Brazil.
Campinas, December 15, 2023 - Focused on increasingly strengthening the clean energy market in Brazil, greentech BYD is taking a new step in the sector by investing more than R$ 6 million in a new Research and Development (R&D) laboratory. Located in Campinas (SP), it will be the first in Latin America to study the entire production cycle of photovoltaic modules from the processing of silicon ore - the main raw material. This brings BYD's total R&D investment in the photovoltaic sector in Brazil to more than R$ 65 million.
BYD's big bet in Brazil and around the world is on creating sustainable solutions backed up by research. The company believes in the prosperity of the energy market and that the country can have complete autonomy in this segment.
"This initiative only proves that Brazil has the potential to be self-sufficient in the production of photovoltaic modules, as it was the 3rd largest exporter of silicon in the world in 2022. Our aim is to stimulate and strengthen production in the country, with research and development directly from Brazil," says Rodrigo Garcia, R&D manager at BYD Energy.
With a completely new scope and a much more complex structure, the laboratory aims to increase the number of employees who will join BYD's research and development team. In addition, this is a reinforcement of the company's commitment to bringing not only its main solutions to the Brazilian market, but also the entire R&D execution of these technologies.
The lab's inauguration ceremony took place today (15/12) at BYD in Campinas and was attended by around 250 guests, including representatives of the brand and public authorities. In attendance were Stella Li, BYD's Global Executive Vice President, Tyler Li, CEO of BYD BrazilDário Saad, Mayor of Campinas, and Felício Ramuth, Deputy Governor of São Paulo.
During the event, BYD also announced that it will bring to Brazil the Battery Service Centerwhich will serve as support for all operations involving products using BYD batteries in the country and throughout Latin America. This operation will guarantee excellent service for the entire region. BYD also confirmed that it will expand its operations in Brazil by starting to sell fast chargers for electrified vehicles.
History
This year, BYD reached the milestone of 2.3 million photovoltaic modules manufactured in Brazil. Part of the resources invested in R&D in the country are directed towards studies carried out in partnership with Brazil's leading universities and institutes, such as Unicamp, Unesp, CTI Renato Archer, UFSC, Instituto Eldorado, among others.
BYD has already invested R$ 7 million in equipment for its own plant, which has a complete weather station dedicated to studying the most diverse types of photovoltaic modules on tropical soil. The station provides data to a central supervisory system via software that brings together all the information that is monitored remotely.
BYD's Brazilian R&D center has already developed the following photovoltaic modules: M7K, MBK, MGK, MGTK, MGBK, MLK, LTK, MSK, Harpia, HJT, APV and BIPV.
About BYD Brazil
BYD arrived in Brazil in 2015, when it opened its first assembly plant for 100% electric bus chassis in Campinas (SP). In 2017, it opened a second factory, also in Campinas, for the production of photovoltaic modules. To supply the electric bus fleet, in 2020 the company began operating its third factory in Brazil, at the Manaus Industrial Estate (PIM), dedicated to the production of lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries. The company is also responsible for a SkyRail (monorail) project in the city of São Paulo, with Line 17 - Gold. In addition, BYD sells energy storage systems, inverters, forklifts, trucks, vans and cars in Brazil, all electric and with low pollutant emissions. More recently, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the company is also selling disposable masks in the country. In April 2021, BYD Brasil joined the United Nations (UN) Global Compact. In November 2021, it took the first step towards starting to sell passenger cars in the country and today it already has five models launched and a consolidated network of dealerships in operation. In April 2022, BYD Energy opened new facilities and a complete line of photovoltaic modules in the Brazilian market and, this year, reached the milestone of 2.3 million photovoltaic panels produced in the country.
