Chinese giant BYD to raise investment by $144 mln in Vietnam’s Phu Tho province

Chinese giant BYD will increase its investment in Vietnam by $144 million, Phu Tho province’s industrial park authority has announced.

The investment will boost the Apple Inc. supplier's production of modems for 4G and 5G base transceiver stations (BTS); and lithium batteries for smartphones, laptops, and electronic items, the authority of the northern province added. The project is set to begin in October.

BYD Electronics (Vietnam) Company Limited received its investment license for the first phase in Phu Tho province in August 2021. The $269 million investment entered into official operations in August 2022, assembling tablets and manufacturing electronic components for camera drones. So far, BYD has disbursed $180 million out of its registered investment, gaining a revenue of $402 million as of April 2023.

In May, Phu Tho industrial park authority said BYD would invest an additional $183.7 million in its electronics manufacturing facility in the northern province. The second-phase investment includes $178.2 million for manufacturing graphic adapters and electronic components with ceramic, glass, and iron components; and $5.5 million for producing batteries for tablets and smartphones.

Electric vehicle maker BYD’s electronics arm, which operates a Vietnam plant making products and components for Apple, has agreed to buy U.S.-based manufacturing firm Jabil’s mobility business in China for around $2.2 billion.

BYD Electronic International Co. is taking over Jabil’s product manufacturing business located in Chengdu and Wuxi, China, the BYD arm announced Monday, adding the deal includes the manufacturing of products for existing customers.

The Chinese EV giant’s electronics firm, with factories in Vietnam and China, makes a wide variety of products from smartphone cases to wireless modules used in cars.

BYD, dubbed China’s Tesla, will expand its investment in Vietnam with plans to manufacture EVs in the country for the market and others in Southeast Asia, BYD chairman Wang Chuanfu told a meeting with Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha in May.