BYD has built its 100,000th new energy vehicle at its Thailand plant, roughly 26 months after the Rayong facility started production. The company announced the milestone on Wednesday; the vehicle rolled off the line on September 21.

The unit was a BYD Atto 3, the compact battery-electric SUV sold as the Yuan Plus in China and the first model BYD introduced when it entered the Thai market in 2022.

A 150,000-unit plant finding its pace

The factory sits in the WHA Industrial Estate in Rayong province and holds designed annual capacity of 150,000 vehicles. It is BYD's first wholly owned overseas passenger-vehicle production base. Operations began in July 2024.

The production ramp has been gradual. The plant built its 10,000th vehicle in November 2024 and its 70,000th in November 2025. That leaves roughly 30,000 units added over the following ten months as output gathered pace — an acceleration, but still short of what the designed capacity implies at full utilization.

Five models have received Made in Thailand (MiT) certification: the Dolphin, Atto 3, Seal 5 DM-i, Sealion 5 DM-i and Sealion 6 DM-i. The mix spans battery-electric and plug-in hybrid nameplates.

Localization numbers climbing

BYD said Thai nationals now account for 95% of the plant's workforce, up from about 93% in July. The company says it has created more than 5,000 jobs in the country. Local procurement stands at about 50% — a figure that matters for Thai policymakers pushing EV makers to deepen domestic value added in exchange for import-duty incentives and subsidy eligibility.

The company said it would continue to expand local manufacturing, develop talent and strengthen its supply chain. Those are stated intentions rather than confirmed investment figures, and no new capacity target accompanied the announcement.

Thailand as BYD's Asia-Pacific anchor and export base

Thailand is BYD's most important market in the Asia-Pacific region. Cumulative deliveries in the country passed 130,000 vehicles in July, a figure that includes imports predating and running alongside local production.

The plant also serves as an export hub. In August 2025 it made its first shipment to Europe — more than 900 Dolphin units bound for the UK, Germany and Belgium. That channel matters for BYD as tariffs and trade barriers tighten around Chinese-built vehicles; Thai-origin production offers the company a second sourcing point for markets beyond ASEAN.

What to watch

The next markers are concrete: whether the plant approaches its 150,000-unit annual design capacity, how quickly the local procurement share moves past 50%, and the scale of follow-on European shipments after the initial 900-vehicle Dolphin consignment. Any expansion announcement with hard investment figures would signal whether Rayong shifts from assembly-for-Thailand to a full-volume global export base.