SHENZHEN, China — BYD Co., the Chinese electric vehicle titan that recently overtook Tesla Inc. as the world’s top seller, is raising its overseas sales projections as surging global oil prices accelerate the consumer shift toward battery-powered transport.

Mia Gu, BYD deputy director, said the Shenzhen-based automaker now expects international deliveries to climb as much as 43 percent this year, targeting approximately 1.5 million units from the initial 1.3 million-unit goal set in January.

Gu said that higher projections were driven by geopolitical volatility in the Middle East that began in February, which disrupted energy markets and sent crude prices higher across major economies.

“After the first quarter, we observed our marketing performance. We increased our target to 1.5 million based on the oil price, which has increased,” she told reporters at BYD’s global headquarters here.

Last year, BYD sold a combined total of 4.6 million EVs in both domestic and overseas markets, unseating Elon Musk-led Tesla as the world’s largest EV maker.

While BYD expects another challenging year in China amid intense competition from local EV makers, the company aims to leverage foreign markets to propel its sales growth.

For the year, BYD expects higher-than-average sales from European markets, particularly the United Kingdom, Spain, and Italy.

Stronger consumer demand is also seen in Southeast Asia, especially in Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore.

In the Philippines, EV purchases rose by 36 percent to 11,800 units in the first quarter from 8,664 units in the same period last year, based on data from the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI).

This does not include sales from BYD, which is sold in the Philippines by Ayala-led ACMobility, since it is not a CAMPI member.

Last year, sales of BYD Cars Philippines soared by 446 percent to 26,122 units from 4,780 units in 2024.

While demand for BYD vehicles is rapidly increasing in the Philippines, Gu said there are still no plans for the company to manufacture vehicles in the country.

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) earlier said it is developing guidelines for an incentive program to attract investment in EV production.

Instead, Gu said BYD is more focused on strengthening its production base elsewhere in Southeast Asia, particularly in Thailand and Cambodia.

The company is constructing its newest manufacturing plant in the region of Indonesia, while an assembly facility is being considered in Malaysia.

If BYD expands its manufacturing capability in Southeast Asia, Gu said the company may opt to do so in Vietnam, given that plans to build a battery plant there are already underway.

To further solidify its presence abroad, BYD plans to introduce its super-charging platform as early as the end of the year, following the rollout of the new technology across China.

With this, range anxiety could become a thing of the past, as vehicles featuring its second-generation Blade Battery can charge from 10 percent to 97 percent in just nine minutes.

Gu said the company plans to first introduce these next-generation charging terminals in Europe, with other regions to follow.