SunSirs: $143 Billion and Rising: China's Quest for EV Supremacy

After years of investing in Europe, Chinese EV and battery firms are turning to Asia, Africa, and Latin America

Indonesia and Hungary have been the biggest recipients of Chinese EV funding in the last decade.
Companies like BYD and CATL have expanded operations across the globe for operational and geopolitical reasons.
Chinese companies have found it riskier to set up business abroad compared to home.
Chinese electric-vehicle companies have invested big bucks over the past decade to establish their global supremacy.

Companies such as CATL and BYD, among others, poured $143 billion into foreign EV and battery ventures between 2014 and 2025, according to data from independent research provider Rhodium Group. With Western trade barriers forcing Chinese companies to rethink their approach to global expansion, in 2024, for the first time, they spent more on building the EV supply chain abroad than at home. "China's outward investment in the EV ecosystem reflects a deliberate ‘go global' strategy to secure its full value chain, from raw materials to finished vehicles, as geopolitical frictions and market access barriers rise," Bill Russo, founder and CEO of Shanghai-based advisory firm Automobility Limited, told Rest of World.

Two countries received the highest EV investment from Chinese firms: Hungary attracted $18 billion, while Indonesia pulled in $22 billion, Rhodium data shows.

Hungary has been strengthening ties with China throughout Viktor Orbán's 15 years as prime minister, offering tax breaks and infrastructural support. Four of the 10 biggest Chinese investments in Europe last year went to Hungary, and the landlocked nation is on track to become the second-largest battery producer outside of China, according to analysts tracking the investments. Unlike the EU and the U.S., Hungary has no plans to decouple from China.

Because Japan is lagging in EVs, there is an opportunity for the Chinese."

Indonesia started attracting Chinese investment after banning the export of unprocessed ores in 2014. The country is now the world's largest supplier of nickel, a crucial battery mineral, providing more than two-thirds of the global supply in 2024. Chinese companies control roughly three-quarters of domestic refining capacity in Indonesia.

Indonesia is also a massive auto market going green. The government has set ambitious targets to deploy 2 million electric cars and 12 million electric two-wheelers by 2030. Chinese players are not just bringing products but also helping build the domestic supply chain. 

"The Asian market has been traditionally dominated by the Japanese for [internal combustion engine] vehicles, but because Japan is lagging in EVs, there is an opportunity for the Chinese," Nitin Pangarkar, associate professor of strategy and policy at the National University of Singapore, told Rest of World. "It is also near China, geographically and culturally."

Overall, Europe — an early adopter of EVs — had received the bulk of the Chinese investments for component and full vehicle manufacturing. That dynamic shifted with Latin America receiving most of the investment in vehicle assembly in the second quarter of this year. More than two-thirds of the investment in manufacturing components like battery materials went to Asia during the same period.

In the same quarter, 75% of Chinese investment in raw materials went to Africa for the first time, diversifying beyond Asia and Latin America, according to Rhodium. 

"Battery capacity going to Africa is chasing the raw materials and a more welcoming environment for Chinese investment," Pangarkar said. "Lower costs may be an added benefit."

Since 2019, CATL has built plants in Germany, Hungary, Indonesia, and Spain. By next year, the company aims to start mass production at its 100-GWh battery plant in Hungary, announced in mid-2022. Earlier this year, CATL and its partners set up a $6 billion battery plant in Indonesia to create a full supply chain, from nickel mining to battery manufacturing and recycling. 

CATL's goal is to make high-quality technology accessible across the globe."

"CATL's goal is to make high-quality technology accessible across the globe, helping to achieve international sustainability goals," the company told Rest of World in an emailed statement. "As part of our global strategy to better respond to the needs of our customers and meet the growing demand for electric vehicles worldwide, CATL has actively expanded the overseas footprint through a series of investments in four manufacturing plants outside China."

BYD's passenger vehicle factory in Hungary is currently under construction — the first of its kind by a Chinese automaker in Europe. In West Java, Indonesia, the company is building a $1 billion factory expected to be operational in January 2026.

BYD did not respond to Rest of World‘s request for comment.

Chinese companies began acquiring stakes in critical minerals in the mid-2010s, targeting cobalt in Congo, lithium in Latin America, and nickel in Indonesia, Armand Meyer, senior research analyst at Rhodium, told Rest of World. This global push for extracting raw materials peaked between 2021 and 2023, driven by demand for lithium and local refining requirements. It has since tapered off.

"Investment in mining and refining has slowed due to tighter restrictions on foreign ownership of critical minerals and volatile lithium prices," Meyer said.

In the midst of U.S.-China tensions, Chinese players are investing in Morocco and Nigeria for critical minerals, expanding their Southeast Asia battery push, and setting up regional production hubs in Mexico and Brazil.

Chinese players have struggled to replicate their domestic success abroad. Only 25% of announced projects in other countries have been completed, compared with a 45% completion rate at home, Rhodium data shows. Cancellation rates abroad are at 14% versus 7% for domestic projects. These firms face several challenges outside their home turf, from underdeveloped local sectors to talent constraints to regulatory and policy hurdles.

China is methodically rewiring the global EV supply chain around its industrial and geopolitical interests."

Planning approvals are easier to obtain in China compared to many other countries, Louis Brennan, a business professor at Trinity College Dublin, told Rest of World. Talent and technical prowess, China's biggest assets at home, become double-edged swords abroad, he said. 

"Chinese companies tend to rely on imported labour from China rather than locally sourced labour in the construction of its plants. … Such labour policies generate local resentments and opposition," Brennan said. "Added to that is the anxiety that China feels about the leakage of its advanced technology."

Even with these growing pains, Chinese EV firms see merit in placing bets around the globe, Russo said.

"Still, even if only a fraction of projects are completed, the direction of travel is clear: China is methodically rewiring the global EV supply chain around its industrial and geopolitical interests," he said.

Ananya Bhattacharya is a reporter for Rest of World covering South Asia's tech scene. She is based in Mumbai, India.

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