BYD Selects Budapest for European HQ and R&D Centre
BYD, the world’s leading manufacturer of new-energy vehicles, has chosen Budapest for its European headquarters and will establish a complementary research and development centre in the city.
The company will create thousands of high-value jobs in the Hungarian capital and nurture talent by collaborating with at least three universities. The headquarters, planned for the 11th district, will become BYD’s fifth Hungarian site after its Komárom electric-bus factory and facilities in Fót, Páty and Szeged, where passenger-car production will soon begin.
BYD will invest heavily in two initial R&D projects. One will integrate advanced intelligence into modern mobility, while the other will pioneer next-generation electrification technologies, reinforcing the firm’s electric-vehicle leadership.
BYD will file patents from the Hungarian centre and partner with domestic start-ups and suppliers to demonstrate its localisation strategy. At least 90 per cent of employees will hold higher-education qualifications, underscoring the project’s knowledge-intensive character.
BYD Chairman Wang Chuanfu said: “Establishing BYD’s European headquarters in Hungary is a natural progression. As the core hub for BYD’s European operations, the headquarters will focus on three key functions: sales and after-sales services, vehicle certification and testing, and localised vehicle design and feature development. We aim to deepen integration with local markets through these synergies, enhance our localisation capabilities and brand influence, and ensure sustainable growth in Europe.”
Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán commented: “Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán commented: “Our goal is for foreign investors to bring development capacities to Hungary. This includes not only manufacturing but also development capacities. Our idea has always been that the factories arrive first, then the factories’ development centres arrive, and finally the research centres arrive. It doesn’t work the other way around. First production, then development, and then research. That is why today’s meeting and agreement are of great importance, because now BYD is opening a new era – the company is also bringing its development centre to Hungary.”
