Yuchai jumps into European power market

YCF30 EU Stage 5 engine on the Yuchai stand at Agritechnica 2025 (Photo: Power Progress)

Founded in 1951, Guangxi Yuchai Machinery Co. Ltd. is a company based in Yulin, China which manufactures a broad range of diesel engines for construction machinery, agricultural equipment and on-highway vehicles, plus power generation applications.

Listed under China Yuchai International, the company has built up a global presence and now has operations in about 180 countries; it’s widely agreed there are 195 recognised nation states around the globe, so the company has a presence in most territories.

Yuchai has a track record of investing in R&D, with the goal of addressing environmental awareness and emissions compliance. Joint ventures with companies including Rolls-Royce have delivered such models as the MTU Series 4000, which has gone on to be widely used in power generation products.

European launches

For the first time, Yuchai was present at Agritechnica, held in Hanover, Germany, in November 2025. Under its subsidiary YC-Europe GmbH, which has its headquarters in Frankfurt, the company premiered a series of engines new to the European market. While Agritechnica is known for its agricultural machines and related implements, a series of power companies were present in the Systems & Components halls to show their latest power technologies.

The Yuchai stand featured a wide range of engines of various displacement sizes, from 1.1 to 16 litres. The majority of the models incorporate electric motors to create diesel hybrid solutions.

“We have a full range of hybrid power solutions for agricultural applications,” said Tan Guirong, senior vice president at Guangxi Yuchai Machinery. “All these engines have been developed from the ground up to comply with Stage 5 emissions, so we’re ready for our new customers!”

Looking over the engines on the stand, Guirong highlighted how adding the electrical systems improved both power output and fuel efficiency, while even helping to reduce engine noise. “Maybe that’s the next trend, solutions which can operate with less noise,” he pointed out.

Fitted with a two-speed transmission, the hybridized engines are delivered as a complete package. Separate drives deliver power to the drivetrain and the power take off (PTO) function. The electrical setup emulates a CVT (continuously variable transmission), doing away with otherwise redundant gears and clutches to help improve ease of vehicle operation.

“A powershift gearbox is very expensive and very complicated,” explained Guirong. “With our solution, you can do away with that and reduce the cost to the customer.”

In practise, the electrical portion of the power unit would be paired with a small battery pack. The system does not operate in a pure electric mode; instead, electrical current delivered to the motor is intended to boost total power and torque output. It should be added that the PTO function is only driven by the engine.

Yuchai had planned to attend an earlier Agritechnica show, but that was put on hold due to COVID. So while the engines are new to Europe, they have been in production for between five and six years in China. According to Guirong the engines now feature in a series of machines produced by national OEMs.

Regional expansion

Wang Wen is managing director of YC-Europe. While at Agritechnica, he sat down with Power Progress International to talk about future company strategy.

Wang Wen with the Yuchai K09-HS220 engine at Agritechnica 2025 (Photo: Power Progress)

Asked about reasons why Yuchai was now making moves into Europe, he supported the plan with related numbers. “Sales of Chinese engines outside China have exceeded more than 800,000 units, with particular growth in Europe. We’re seeing exports almost double every year; we exported 86,000 units worldwide in 2024 and we’re projecting near 130,000 units over 2025.”

This is still a relatively small portion of the 600,000 diesel engines Yuchai manufactures each year, but the company will count on increasing export volumes as the machine market in China slows. The company has already appointed dealers in Europe to act on behalf of Yuchai products, including BYM which will cover sales and service across Italy, Spain and Portugal.

“The market in China is slowing down, but overall numbers remain very high,” said Wang. “In part, that’s because our customers in China are managing to sell a lot of machines in Europe, some fitted with our engines. I understand that more than 5,000 tractors and other machines using Yuchai engines have been sold in the region.”

Fotrak 754 tractor, one of the range offered in Germany, uses a Yuchai engine (Photo: Fotrak)

He puts this down to European OEMs “looking for alternatives”. While there was no confirmation this was due to regional engine manufacturers increasing their prices, it’s clear the new entries are already drawing local interest. He reported there are even supply deals in place with European machine OEMs, although he was unable to share more details.

Gen sets and construction

Yuchai already supplies engines to various generator set manufacturers. Wang said that he believes plans for the construction of new data centers around the world will further increase that demand, both for backup and prime power, as connections to national grids become more difficult to arrange.

Looking at construction machinery, wheel loaders are preferred to backhoes in China. With it being reported that around 40% of the national wheel loader market is comprised of units using pure electric drivetrains, could Yuchai look to get into the battery powertrain market?

“Those numbers are correct – but our hybrid solution already makes up 10% of the wheel loader market,” responded Wang. “The hybrid is great solution, it can reduce fuel consumption by between 10 and 40%, based on the use-case scenario. This is also being exported and it’s proving very popular because in many cases there are not the recharging points to support pure electric machinery.”

He added that machines using this hybrid solution are now available in a variety of regions, including the Middle East, Africa, Australia and South America.

With regards to engine production, Yuchai has plans to expand its existing footprint with the addition of new plants in Brazil. There are three different ways of advancing: first, an existing manufacturer can produce engines under license; second, Yuchai sets up a joint-venture with a local company to produce engines; third, Yuchai will invest in construction of a new plant and creation of a 100% subsidiary.

Which of the three routes is selected is based on a risk/reward assessment. Partners can help to promote products in a new market, while markets where there is already traction can support increased investment. For Brazil, it’s likely Yuchai engines will be produced under license.