BYD weighs Indonesian battery plant to raise local content
The carmaker is assessing investment costs and long-term production needs as it seeks to increase local content in its vehicles to 60 per cent.
BYD is evaluating plans for an electric-vehicle battery manufacturing facility in Indonesia, with the investment amount, production scale and long-term volume requirements still under internal review, a company executive said.
Luther Panjaitan, head of public and government relations at PT BYD Motor Indonesia, said battery manufacturing would be important to reaching the company's target of 60 per cent local content. He disclosed neither an investment figure nor a construction timetable during Industry Minister Muhammad Sarmuji's visit to BYD's Subang plant in West Java on 13 November 2026.
Sarmuji welcomed the proposal, saying the government wanted further BYD investment to help develop Indonesia's battery-based vehicle industry. He said investment should benefit domestic manufacturers and workers, rather than focus solely on production facilities.
The minister also urged BYD to expand its Indonesian supply chain, either by establishing component businesses itself or by encouraging Chinese investors to set up local operations.
According to Panjaitan, BYD's operating vehicle plant in Subang represents an investment of about Rp11 trillion and can produce 150,000 vehicles annually. The 126-hectare site employs about 6,000 people, with the company targeting 20,000 workers when it reaches full capacity.
BYD has also partnered with more than 200 local suppliers, including manufacturers of tyres, glass and braking components, to support vehicle production.
