(Yicai Global) Sept. 1 -- Chinese electric carmaker BYD has put its BRL15 million (USD2.7 million) lithium iron phosphate battery plant in Manaus, Brazil into operation, The Paper reported today.

The 5,000 square-meter factory can produce 18,000 battery modules a year, the report said.

The first batch of batteries will be delivered to the city of Sao Jose dos Campos in Sao Paulo state which bought 12 22-meter pure electric buses from BYD in May for its urban rapid transit system, the first such project in Brazil.

“With the new battery factory, we will join hands with more companies dedicated to the development of clean energy to keep promoting the electrification of public transport in Brazil,” said Li Tie, general manager of BYD Brazil. “We are in the ramp-up phase of production capacity now. It is estimated that we will make more than 1,000 battery modules by the end of this month.”

This is Shenzhen-based BYD’s third plant in the South American country. It already runs an electric bus chassis factory and a solar module plant in Campinas, Sao Paulo to provide locals with pure electric buses, trucks, forklifts, solar modules and other clean energy products with zero emissions.

BYD has nine production bases worldwide, including in Guangdong, Beijing and Shanghai, with a total area of nearly seven million square meters. The firm has offices in the US, Europe, Japan, South Korea and India and employs nearly 200,000 people.

Editor: Kim Taylor