BYD Launches China's First Electric Car For Nearly $22,000

December 15, 2008 6:23 a.m. EST

Shenzhen, China (AHN) - China's BYD Co., which is 10 percent owned by U.S. investor Warren Buffett, said Monday that it has launched the world's first homegrown electric, mass-produced plug-in hybrid car.

BYD chairman Wang Chuan Fu told reporters on Monday that the company will sell the vehicle in European and U.S. markets in 2011, which is a delay from its previous decision to launch in the regions by 2010.

The F3 DM can run for 100 kilometers (62 miles) using only batteries that can be charged from a regular electrical outlet, the company said.

"The development of electric-powered vehicles is the best way for the Chinese auto industry to surpass other leading countries," founder and Chairman Wang Chuanfu was quoted as saying by Bloomberg News at an unveiling ceremony in Shenzhen.

The Chinese auto maker began marketing the F3DM this month to cab operators, government agencies and corporate customers; and will be available in the next month at the earliest.

BYD has managed to beat large car makers in the world -- including General Motors Corp., Toyota Motor Co., and Daimler AG -- who have been trying to launch mass-produced plug-in electric and hybrid cars to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

The automaker is planning to sell at least 10,000 units of F3DMs in 2009 and the price tag on each car is at 149,800 yuan ($21,890), which is at the lower price range of hybrid sedan in China.

The market analysts expect the battery-powered cars can be around 30 percent of the total automobile sales in the country by 2020. BYD's hybrid car has a small gasoline engine as a back up.

Shares of the company jumped by more than 4 percent in morning trading session on the Hang Seng Index. The stock has declined more than 12 percent so far this year through Dec. 12.