BYD's Stella Li Lands in Bucharest: What Is the Chinese Giant Planning for Romania?

BYD executive vice president Stella Li made her first visit to Romania on Friday, October 30. At a press conference in Bucharest, the headline was charging rather than car sales: BYD says it is ready to put a few hundred million dollars of its own money into Romania's charging infrastructure. What she did not do was promise a factory.

The money: ultra-fast charging, not production

According to reports by Ziarul Financiar, Mediafax and Antena 3, the first step is a network of 10 to 20 "FLASH Charging" stations, the very high-power charging tech BYD is already rolling out in China. Sites have not been chosen; Li said finding busy, easy-to-reach locations was part of the reason for her trip.

There is no timeline yet and no breakdown of the amount. We also found no official BYD press release about Romania, so for now everything comes from statements made to the press.

How fast, according to BYD

These are manufacturer figures, not independent test results. BYD says its FLASH charger, paired with the new Blade Battery 2.0, takes a compatible battery from 10% to 97% in about 9 minutes, and from 20% to 97% in about 12 minutes at −30°C. Its March 2026 release quoted up to 1,500 kW through a single connector (Chinese-market spec) and a battery storage unit at each station to avoid overloading the grid.

Key caveat: those speeds require cars built for FLASH Charging. In Europe, the first one announced was the DENZA Z9GT from the group's premium brand.

The factory: nothing confirmed

BYD already has its plant in Szeged, Hungary, where series production is due to start by November. It is looking for two more European factory sites, but Li said, as quoted by ZF, that the shortlist is in Western Europe, with market size and electricity prices as the main criteria. France was earlier mentioned as being on the shortlist, at the Paris Motor Show.

Reports that Brașov could be in the running appeared only in the Romanian press ahead of the visit, with no confirmation from BYD.

Romanian suppliers get a foot in the door

The more concrete part for local industry: BYD says it is interested in Romanian auto-parts makers as potential suppliers, and a supplier conference in Romania in 2027 was discussed. Li also said BYD plans to bring its own driver-assistance systems to Europe in roughly 15 months.

What it means for drivers

• Don't look for the stations on a map yet. No locations, no date.
• The 9–12 minute times are BYD claims and need a FLASH-compatible car. A regular EV, including many BYDs on sale today, will charge at its own maximum rate, not the station's.
• Whether other brands can use them has not been said.
• A BYD factory in Romania? Not for now. Any headline treating it as a done deal goes beyond what the company said.

If BYD publishes an official release with more details, we'll update this story.