(Reuters) -China's BYD will start production at its new electric-vehicle plant in Hungary by the end of 2025, an executive said on Monday.

"This shows we are in Europe to stay," BYD's Executive Vice President Stella Li said during a press event at the Munich car show.

The first model off the line will be the Dolphin Surf compact electric car.

The news follows a Reuters report in July that BYD was considering delaying mass production in Hungary until 2026 and operating the plant below capacity for at least the first two years.