China energy storage firm Hithium mulls $900 mln investment in Vietnam

China’s Xiamen Hithium Energy Storage Technology is considering investing up to $900 million to build an energy storage system and battery plant in Vietnam, Reuters reported on Thursday.

If the investment figure is finalized, the company would become one of the largest foreign investors in Vietnam.

The Chinese firm is now expanding in Europe and the U.S. The company's headquarters are located in Haicang, China, with additional offices and manufacturing facilities in the U.S., Germany, India, Australia, and Singapore.

Hithium has emerged as the leader in China's energy storage market in terms of number of projects, and has achieved remarkable growth with an astounding increase in orders of over 4,000% in 2022. Its net revenue soared to approximately $520 million last year, and it is projected to reach about $2.2 billion this year.

It is likely that the company will select Hai Duong province near Hanoi for the project. On May 22, the province’s Party chief Tran Duc Thang welcomed a Hithium delegation to sound out investment opportunities.

Will Shangguang, Hithium director of investment and development, and his delegation focused on Hai Duong’s geographical location, transport infrastructure, industrial zones, and skilled workforce.

Thang told the visitors: “The provincial government pledges to provide the best possible conditions for businesses to invest and operate while adhering to all relevant regulations throughout the entire process, including financial obligations, labor policies, and other legal requirements.”

Hithium's expected factory may cover more than 30 hectares, Reuters said, citing one of its sources. The person was not authorized to speak to the media and declined to be identified.

The news service added that a second source familiar with the discussions said the investment under consideration would be worth at least $500 million. The second person also declined to be identified for the same reason.

Meanwhile, Growatt New Energy, which leases a pre-fabricated plant in Vietnam, is planning to spend about $300 million to acquire 15 hectares of industrial land to build a new factory, the first source told Reuters. The combined value of the two investments would reach $1.2 billion.

Growatt is a leading global maker of battery systems and energy storage inverters for residential and commercial use. The heavyweight inaugurated its first Vietnam plant, located in the northern port city of Hai Phong, this February.

“The opening of our Vietnam factory is an exciting milestone for Growatt as we forge ahead with our globalization strategy to expand our operations globally,” Growatt chairman and CEO David Ding said at the inauguration.

“We've been investing heavily in globalizing our distribution and service networks over the years, and now we open this factory to boost our production capacity and strengthen our capability to deliver reliable and quality products to customers,” he said.

According to Hai Phong data, the first-phase investment is $10 million and that number will soar 10-fold to $100 million in the next phase.

Growatt said for the second phase, it plans to achieve an annual production capacity of 500,000 units of inverters and 100,000 units of batteries.

At present, Gotion High-Tech is co-developing a $275 million battery factory in Vietnam with VinES, the energy arm of Vingroup, the country’s biggest private conglomerate. Vingroup is also the parent company of electric vehicle maker VinFast, which is expanding its EV markets in the U.S., Canada, and Europe.

The VinES- Gotion factory in the central province of Ha Tinh is designed to annually produce 30 million lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery cells. LFP is currently the most mainstream battery technology in the global new energy market, with unique advantages of high safety and long life.

Gotion is headquartered in China but has footprints all over the world, including Silicon Valley, the U.S. The company specializes in several different types of battery chemistries for a myriad of uses inside and out of the automotive segment.