Tesla, BYD in the lead on NEV growth

New energy vehicle makers Tesla and China's BYD have published their vehicle deliveries report for 2021 and both registering rapid growth, driving China as well as the world into the fast lane for NEV development, Chinese financial media outlet Yicai reported.

Tesla on Sunday said it delivered 936,172 electric vehicles in 2021, an 87.2 percent increase compared 2020. If everything goes well, nearly one million deliveries will help Tesla retain its crown as the best-selling NEV car in the world, Yicai said.

So far, Tesla has not disclosed its sales figures in the Chinese market. However, considering several factors, BYD is a notch above Tesla in terms of domestic NEV sales, Yicai predicted.

Tesla electric vehicles have been in short supply since early 2021 and the delivery period for China-made Model 3 and Model Y cars has been extended to 12 to 16 weeks. Tesla's new factories in Berlin, Germany and Austin, Texas, US will be put into use this year. The expansion project for the Shanghai Gigafactory has entered the phase of environment assessment.

Media reported Tesla's total capacity is expected to be 2 million vehicles this year, double its current capacity of 1 million. Driven by positive news, shares of Tesla closed at $1,199.78, up 13.53 percent on the first trading day of this year.

The picture is different when it comes to China's leading NEV manufacturer BYD.

BYD has been defending its position in the domestic NEV market since 2019, when the crown of bestseller in the global new energy vehicle market was grabbed by Tesla. Yicai predicted this year BYD is expected to successfully retain its crown as the best-selling NEV brand in China.

In 2021, BYD sold 730,000 vehicles, up 75.4 percent year-on-year. Its sales of NEVs surged 231.6 percent year-on-year to 593,700 units. In December alone, BYD sold a total of 98,000 vehicles, with NEVs accounting for nearly 95 percent.

According to a research report from CITIC Securities, BYD is expected to deliver 1.50 million NEVs in 2022, including the current order of 200,000 units and the new order of 1.27 million units.

Besides Tesla and BYD, a burgeoning NEV market also benefits China's startups.

In 2021, the NYSE-listed Xpeng delivered 98,100 vehicles, jumping 263 percent from the previous year and ranking first among China's NEV startups. Nio came in at second, with total deliveries of 914,000 vehicles, up 109.1 percent year-on-year. Nasdaq-listed Li Auto ranked third, with total deliveries of 90,500 units, up 109.1 percent from a year earlier.

CITIC Securities predicted sales of Xpeng, Nio and Li Auto are predicted to be 200,000, 162,000 and 147,000 units, respectively, in 2022.

The market penetration rate of NEVs is expected to be 20 percent in China this year, Cui Dongshu, secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association, told Yicai.

A total of 2.51 million new energy vehicles were sold in the first 11 months this year, up 178.3 percent from the same period last year, according to the China Passenger Car Association. The market penetration rate of NEVs came in at 13.9 percent, compared with 5.8 percent in 2020.

Insiders expect that China's NEV market is expected to maintain rapid growth this year, some even predicted that NEVs are expected to grab over 30 percent share of China's auto market in 2025.