Business English Premier Lessons February 2024

Level: B2+

Starting up
• Have you ever driven or ridden in an electric vehicle? If yes, how was the experience different from
a traditional car with a petrol engine?

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Business English Premier Lessons February 2024
Level: B2+

Vocabulary 1 – the EV business

Choose the correct option.

1 Tesla was the first big, successful electric vehicle (EV) maker. The company was a pioneer in the
EV business. A pioneer is among the first / most recent to do something.
2 There was a recent surge in sales from 150,000 sold last quarter to 375,000 this quarter. A surge is
a sudden decrease / increase.
3 Showing huge profits, the company had a blockbuster third quarter. Blockbuster means average /
very successful.
4 Plug-in hybrid vehicles use both electricity and petrol. Hybrid means traditional / combination.
5 If the company can strip out costs from the production process, prices will also go down. Strip out
means reduce / entirely remove.
6 The company produces its own batteries and electric motors, so it has a high level of vertical
integration. A company with vertical integration makes / buys parts for its products.
7 The transition from traditional petrol cars to EVs is changing the automotive industry. A transition is
a lesson / change.
8 There’s a chasm between the great EV-making successes of Tesla and BYD and all other
manufacturers, who aren’t doing nearly as well. A chasm is a very large / small gap.
9 Volkswagen, Mercedes and Renault are traditional original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). One
example of an OEM is a carmaker that produces the parts for many different carmakers / its own
cars.
10 In twenty years, EVs will mostly have replaced combustion vehicles. Combustion vehicles use
petrol / electricity.

Reading 1
Read the article quickly. Are these statements true (T) or false (F)?

1 BYD has recently become the world’s top seller of EVs.

2 In the third quarter, BYD and Tesla have roughly equal shares of the global EV market.
3 BYD’s main market is now outside of China.
4 BYD produces many of the most important parts for its cars.
5 Traditional carmakers are competing very well against BYD and Tesla.

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Business English Premier Lessons February 2024
Level: B2+

China’s BYD moves closer to unseating Tesla as EV leader

Strong sales increase pressure on US pioneer to keep crown as top seller of purely electric vehicles
Chinese group BYD has moved a step closer to 1unseating Tesla as the world’s top-selling electric-vehicle
manufacturer after reporting 2bumper fourth-quarter sales.
The Shenzhen-based company, which has become 3emblematic of China’s rise as a powerhouse in clean
technology, said on Monday that it sold a record 526,000 of its battery-only vehicles in the quarter, helped by a
more than 70 per cent surge in December sales.
The figures leave Elon Musk’s Tesla needing to beat analyst expectations and deliver a blockbuster fourth
quarter to maintain its position as the biggest seller of purely electric vehicles.
According to estimates 4compiled by Bloomberg, Tesla is expected to have sold about 483,000 vehicles in the
quarter. The company is scheduled to release production figures on Tuesday.
At the end of the third quarter, BYD and Tesla each 5boasted about a 17 per cent share of the global market for
fully electric cars. In the third quarter, BYD sold about 432,000 versus Tesla’s 435,000.
When including plug-in hybrid vehicles — which China counts as “new energy vehicles”, or NEVs, alongside
pure battery and hydrogen-powered models — BYD overtook Tesla in the first half of 2022.
While BYD is now 6making inroads into international markets, the group is strongest on 7home turf where it
has built a 35 per cent market share across the NEV segment.
BYD was founded by Wang Chuanfu, a former university professor, in the mid-1990s. Wang initially focused on
making rechargeable batteries, including for early cell phones, but expanded into the car industry in the early
2000s. The company counts Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway as a shareholder.
After initially relying on existing industry technology, BYD is now considered a leader, with a focus on
stripping out costs from the production process. It also boasts a high level of vertical integration, including
owning one of the world’s biggest EV battery-making companies.
The group’s total sales for 2023 were up 62 per cent to more than 3mn vehicles, according to the figures released
on Monday.
While much attention has focused on the 8rivalry between Tesla and BYD, analysts have also pointed out that
the biggest losers from the rapid transition to cleaner vehicles has been many of the oldest carmakers who have
been slow to adapt.
Daniel Roeska, an auto analyst with Bernstein, said that consumers had perceived a “chasm” between the
industry leaders — Tesla and BYD — and the “traditional [original equipment manufacturers]” such as
Volkswagen, Mercedes or Renault.
“Many 9incumbent OEMs rushed into electric vehicles without appreciating the far-reaching technological and
design difference between combustion and electric vehicles,” he said.

© The Financial Times Limited. All Rights Reserved.

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Business English Premier Lessons February 2024
Level: B2+

Vocabulary 2 – Vocabulary in context

Match each expression in bold (1–7) in the article with the correct definition (a–i).

a extra-high
b was happy to report
c replacing
d successfully entering
e a symbol
f gathered, put together
g currently powerful
h competition
i domestic market

Reading 2
Choose the best answer to each question.

1 When did BYD sell 526,000 EVs?

a) in December c) in the final quarter
b) in the quarter up to last Monday

2 How well will Tesla need to perform to beat BYD’s sales?

a) better than expected c) as expected
b) the article doesn’t say

3 What did BYD do in the first half of 2022?

a) sell more electric-only cars than Tesla c) begin selling hydrogen-powered cars
b) sell more NEVs than Tesla

4 How long did BYD make batteries before moving into car making?
a) more than ten years c) less than five years
b) less than ten years

5 What is one way that BYD controls manufacturing costs?

a) using as many robots as possible in production c) producing key parts for its cars
b) making cars outside of China

6 According to Daniel Roeska, what have OEMs failed to properly understand about EVs?
a) they are unlike petrol cars in many ways c) they require powerful batteries
b) they are very expensive to produce

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Business English Premier Lessons February 2024
Level: B2+

Grammar – Future Perfect Simple and Continuous

Complete the sentences with the Future Perfect. Use the Continuous form where possible.

1 Tesla probably ____________________ (sell) about 483,000 by the end of the quarter.
2 How many EVs ____________________ (produce) by the end of 2024?
3 I ____________________ (own) my EV for two years in March.
4 On Friday, I ____________________ (wait) for my new EV for three months.
5 The company ____________________ (produce) car batteries for twenty years next month.
6 ____________________ (you / buy) an EV by the end of summer?
7 In 2026, our factory ____________________ (operate) for eighty years.
8 How many years ____________________ (she / work) for the company when she retires next
year?

Further discussion
Work together to answer these questions.

1 Vehicles powered by electricity are considered clean technology because they don’t directly
produce CO2. Can you think of ways they may indirectly produce CO2?
2 Are there enough EV charging stations in your area or places where you need to drive? Would
driving an EV be less convenient for you than driving a petrol car?
3 What do you think petrol companies should do in response to the transition to EVs?

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