BYD (Build Your Dreams) has commissioned the first of what will probably become a fleet of four giant ro-ro ferries with up to 7 000 cars to ‘fuel’ its expansion into Europe. According to Chinese press agency Xinhua, the BYD Explorer 1 has set sail from China’s southern city of Shenzhen to the Dutch port of Flushing and German Bremershafen with 5 449 EVs aboard.

The BYD Explorer 1 will sail by Zeebrugge in Belgium, the most important car import harbor in Europe that manages 2,5 million cars in transit together with Antwerp, as the ro-ro terminal has run out of capacity. Expansion plans with a new 10 000-car garage are trailing, waiting for permits.

13 decks for 7 000 cars

BYD Explorer 1 was built by CIMC Raffles, a state-owned China International Marine Containers (CIMC) subsidiary. It is owned by international shipping company Zodiac Maritime, which leases it to BYD. Zodiac Maritime is headquartered in London and is owned by the Israeli Ofer family.

The ship, sailing under the Liberian flag, is 199,9 meters long and 38 meters wide and has a draft of 8,6 meters. The cruising speed is 19 knots (35 km/h). It has 13 decks and parking spots for up to 7 000 cars.

LNG-fueled main engines and generators

It uses liquefied natural gas as the primary fuel for the main engine and generators, significantly reducing emissions of nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides. A special low-resistance methyl silane antifouling paint should lower fuel consumption.

This LNG-fueled car carrier is billed as China’s first explicitly built to export domestically-made cars. Other Chinese automakers, including Chery Automobile and SAIC Motor, have been placing orders for vessels as Chinese car exports are boosting.

BYD alone exported some 243 000 cars out of its total sales of 3 million vehicles in 2023. Australia, Brazil, and Israel are its biggest overseas markets today, but Europe is rapidly gaining momentum.

30 000 Chinese cars monthly in Zeebrugge

In Zeebrugge, some 20 to 30 000 Chinese cars are debarking monthly, 200 000 yearly, primarily for transit to markets like France, the Netherlands, and Norway. The Chinese cars offloaded in Zeebrugge today are brands like MG, Aiways, Xpeng, Nio, Omoda, Hongqi, and European brands made in China.

That includes Tesla models made in Shanghai, but also the BMW iX3, which is built in the Brilliance factory in Shenyang, all Polestar models, and now Volvo’s EX30, which is exclusively made in China until Volvo Car Gent will add European production from 2025.

However, the ICO car terminal has reached its limit and has refused more cars from MG and BYD. The latter ICO hopes to accommodate from mid-2025, as a new parking garage for 10 000 could be finished. Zeebrugge is especially popular because, unlike the Dutch ports, it also has maritime connections to Scandinavia and the Mediterranean.