The growing controversy in the automaker's biggest overseas market has put a spotlight on immigrant worker conditions in the northeastern Brazilian state of Bahia. A deal with labor prosecutors involving BYD and the Jinjiang Group could be inked as soon as Jan.

Local authorities said the contractor employed by BYD was forcing 163 Chinese workers to endure slave-like conditions at the construction site

BYD has been building the factory with an annual capacity of producing 150,000 cars initially in Brazil, the Chinese EV giant's largest overseas market, as part of plans to start production there.