Uber is collaborating with BYD to bring Chinese EVs to Canada
Influx of Chinese EVs could lead to job cuts in Canada’s EV market
by Christian Zdravko
Uber is planning to add 100,000 EVs from Chinese electric vehicle (EV) company, Build Your Dreams (BYD) to its global collection.
This partnership is expected to deploy BYD EVs on the roads under Uber in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East.
Their goal is to increase EV ownership among Uber drivers.
According to the BYD website, the companies want to “accelerate the transition to electric vehicles,” and are committed to creating “a cleaner, greener world.”
Uber is now incentivizing its drivers to switch to EVs through maintenance, charging, financing, and leasing discounts.
A few months ago, U.S. president Joe Biden hiked tariffs up to 100% on Chinese-manufactured EVs in a strategy to protect American EV manufacturing jobs.
Some say that while this move can protect jobs within the country, it can cause increased EV prices.
China’s BYD vehicles are cheaper than those of other manufacturers, like Tesla. China’s cheap labour practices are part of what is driving these low vehicle prices.
According to the World Economic Forum (WEF) China produces over half of all EVs in the world. The WEF, and Biden have warned about China’s potential to flood the EV market.
Flooding a market, or dumping, is when a country exports a product at a lower price than is sold within its borders. In this scenario, BYD, and its large inventory of cheaper EVs could lessen demand for domestic-made EVs, leading to a faltering EV job market.
If this happens in Canada, the multi-billion dollar EV and EV battery manufacturing industry may see job cuts.
There is talk of implementing the same tariffs in Canada as those in the U.S.
General Motors (GM) Canada supports tariffs on Chinese EVs, noting they would level the playing field in the industry.
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre also supports the tariffs. In a recent speech, he criticized Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for not implementing the tariffs. He said that with the Conservatives in power, Canada would join the U.S. in placing tariffs on Chinese EVs.
Whether or not a tariff is placed on Chinese vehicles may determine the success of the Canadian EV industry.
