The Chinese e-car manufacturer BYD, which has just sent its first PCTC on its way to Europe, has selected the Wallem Group as its ship manager.
Wallem says it is providing commercial services for the first ship chartered by the Chinese e-car manufacturer. The PCTC “BYD Explorer No. 1” is currently on its first voyage to Europe. [ds_preview]
“Wallem Group supports BYD in the day-to-day operation of the vessel, including cargo stowage, route and bunker planning, and liaises between the vessel, the owner and the charterer. In addition, Wallem Group is working closely with BYD to explore opportunities to support the group in all other maritime functions such as cargo bookings and vessel performance management,” said the ship manager.
The 199.9m long and 38m wide “BYD Explorer No. 1”, with a capacity of up to 7,000 vehicles, uses LNG as the main fuel for the main engine and generators and is said to have environmentally friendly features that significantly reduce emissions of carbon, nitrogen and sulphur oxides. It is the first Chinese-built ship designed and built to transport domestic electric vehicles abroad.
The world’s largest electric car manufacturer is already the industry leader in China, has been pushing international expansion overseas since 2020 and overtook Tesla in global electric vehicle sales last quarter. The company is planning to build up a fleet of car carriers for this purpose. It will start with two PCTCs (Pure Car and Truck Carriers), each with a capacity of 7,000 CEU, of which the “BYD Explorer No. 1” is the first ship in operation. This will be followed by four further, even larger ships, which will also be powered by LNG and will be able to carry around 9,400 CEU.
