June 24, 2026 – BYD kicks off an ambitious 15,000-kilometer all-electric odyssey from Rome to Xi’an, retracing Marco Polo’s historic Silk Road route with zero fuel consumption over 43 days.
The Chinese automaker, serving as the exclusive flagship mobility partner for the “Marco Polo New Silk Road” expedition launched on June 13, is leading a convoy across more than a dozen countries — including Vatican City, Croatia, Hungary, Serbia, Türkiye, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan. The journey threads through wildly varying terrain: Mediterranean plains, the Anatolian Plateau, the Gobi Desert, and the rugged Caucasus Mountains. Extreme temperature swings and cross-border charging logistics add further complexity, turning the expedition into a real-world endurance test for BYD’s electric platform.
What makes the crossing feasible is BYD’s ultra-fast charging infrastructure. On June 14, the company inaugurated Europe’s first BYD flash-charging station in Bologna, Italy, capable of delivering a five-minute top-up or a full charge in just nine minutes — rivaling the speed of a conventional fuel stop. Even in sub-zero conditions of minus 30°C, charging time increases by only three minutes compared to room temperature.
BYD is rapidly scaling this network globally, targeting 6,000 flash-charging stations by the end of 2026, with 3,000 planned for Europe alone — accounting for half of all overseas deployments.
Meanwhile, on June 18–19 in Belgrade, Serbia, the Sustainability and Connectivity Forum brought together dozens of government, finance, business, and technology leaders to discuss China’s green transition, digital innovation, and AI advancement. Columbia University professor Jeffrey Sachs highlighted China’s smart grid and electric vehicle ecosystem as a model for more efficient and sustainable development worldwide.
