Buffett-backed Chinese automaker BYD suspends plan for Canada plant
China's BYD Co Ltd has put plans to open its first Canadian electric truck plant on hold but could revive the project when the electric vehicle maker sees a business case, a company executive said.
BYD, backed by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc, had planned to open the site this year in Ontario with about 40 workers, a boost to green manufacturing in the country's most populous province.
“It's just not happening right now, and we're not necessarily waiting on anything to make it happen,” Ted Dowling, Vice President of BYD Canada said on Thursday. “When the business case makes sense, we'll do it.”
Dowling did not give a specific reason for the decision to suspend the plan, but noted that the company had made more progress winning Canadian orders for buses than trucks.
He said BYD's decision was not related to Ontario's move on July 3 to scrap the province's incentives for green vehicles and its cap and trade program, which required companies to buy allowances for some greenhouse gas emissions.
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