(Paris) The ride-hailing giant Uber has established an unprecedented partnership with the Chinese manufacturer BYD to provide 100,000 electric vehicles to its drivers across the world, the two companies announced on Wednesday.
The multi-year partnership will begin in Europe and Latin America before expanding to the Middle East, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, Uber and BYD said in a statement.
Depending on the country, this agreement will allow drivers to access financing or leasing offers for BYD vehicles, discounts on charging, vehicle maintenance or insurance, the Chinese manufacturer said.
These are not purchases like the gigantic order for 100,000 Tesla cars by the rental company Hertz at the end of 2021.
The United States is not affected by this agreement, as imports of Chinese cars are heavily taxed there.
“As the largest global agreement of its kind, we are excited about the benefits this partnership will bring to drivers, riders and cities,” said Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber.
Uber has already made agreements, although much smaller, with Renault-Nissan, Stellantis and Hyundai in Europe, or Hertz for its Teslas in the United States.
By the end of 2023, the platform had 126,000 drivers of vehicles with zero exhaust gas emissions, out of a total of 7 million drivers and delivery people worldwide.
From 2030, Uber plans to only accept electric vehicles in Europe and North America.
BYD, the leader in China’s electric vehicle market, is accelerating its internationalization and plans to open a factory in Hungary and another in Turkey soon.
“When an Uber driver switches to an electric vehicle, they generate significantly fewer emissions than a regular driver, simply because they’re on the road more often,” Khosrowshahi continued. “Many riders also tell us that their first experience with an electric vehicle was during an Uber ride, and we’re excited to help demonstrate the benefits of electric vehicles to more people around the world.”
The two companies also said they will collaborate “on BYD’s future autonomous vehicles that will be deployed on the Uber platform.”