BYD Denies Violating Hungarian Environmental Regulations, Site Selection for Second European Factory Still Underway
Claire Weston
BYD's executive VP publicly denied Hungarian environmental charges and said the company has hired lawyers to respond; the Hungary plant still targets Q4 assembly start, and a second European site is being scouted — but the new government is tightening scrutiny on Chinese EV makers.
What exactly are Hungarian police investigating?
Police are probing whether BYD moved soil containing toxic substances off the construction site of its first EU plant in the southern city of Szeged.
This means → the issue is not factory emissions but how excavated waste soil was handled during construction.
CATL and Samsung SDI face similar scrutiny — this is not a BYD-only case.
How did BYD respond?
Executive VP Stella Li told Bloomberg on June 20 in Belgrade that the allegations "are false" and the company has hired lawyers to respond.
Her words: "We have not done anything wrong."
In plain terms = BYD's stance is clear — deny, hold ground, and fight it legally.
Why now? Is the new government the key factor?
The investigation came after Hungary's new prime minister, Péter Magyar, took office.
Compared with former PM Viktor Orbán's tenure, the new government has adopted a noticeably stricter stance on environmental issues in the EV industry.
This reflects a political shift in Hungary — the old "investment-first" tolerance is giving way to tighter environmental enforcement.
Is BYD's European expansion plan affected?
Li reiterated that full-vehicle assembly at the Hungary plant will start in Q4 and said the company wants to "ramp up capacity as soon as possible."
A second European plant is still being scouted; BYD has a shortlist but no final decision — "We are open to acquiring an existing plant, to finding a partner, and to building from scratch."
In Serbia, Li met President Aleksandar Vučić, who called Serbia "an important node in BYD's European production network."
This means → BYD is not publicly slowing down, but the outcome of the environmental probe could materially shape the pace and path of its European capacity expansion.
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