Vietnamese carmaker VinFast starts work on fifth EV plant project

Vietnamese startup automaker VinFast on Sunday kicked off an electric vehicle (EV) plant project in the central province of Ha Tinh - its second in Vietnam and fifth globally.

Construction on the VND7,300 billion ($287.5 miilion) plant, located on 36 hectares in the Vung Ang Economic Zone, Ky Anh district, will commence in July next year.

Apart from the operational complex in Vietnam's northern city of Hai Phong, VinFast is building three others in India, Indonesia and the U.S., of which those in India and Indonesia are scheduled to come into operation in 2025.

The project kick-off ceremony in Ha Tinh on Sunday was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha, Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung, top leaders of Ha Tinh, and Pham Nhat Vuong, chairman of Vingroup - the parent company of VinFast. Ha Tinh is the hometown of Vuong, also CEO of VinFast.

In the first phase, the facility will focus on producing two EV lines, VF 3 and VF 5, for sale on domestic and international markets.

With a design capacity of up to 300,000 units/year which can rise to 600,000 in the future, the VinFast plant in Ha Tinh will be one of the largest in Southeast Asia.

The plant is scheduled to inaugurate its first phase in July 2025, only eight months after the project was kicked off - a speed record in the world’s automobile manufacturing industry, according to the company.

When put into operation, it will create nearly 6,000 jobs for local people, which can later increase to 15,000.

VinFast became the top-selling automotive brand in Vietnam in September, October and in the first 10 months of 2024. In October, it delivered more than 11,000 EVs to customers in Vietnam, representing a 21% increase compared to September and bringing 10-month deliveries in the country to more than 51,000.

Nguyen Viet Quang, vice chairman cum CEO of Vingroup, said: "VinFast has officially become the number 1 automaker in terms of market share in Vietnam. Demand in international markets is also growing rapidly. Therefore, building an additional EV factory in Ha Tinh will create a solid foundation for a new period of robust and important development of VinFast."

Vung Ang Economic Zone has the advantages of having a deep-water port, being located on the East-West economic corridor, and connecting with the North-South arterial traffic axes.

The economic zone is now a bright spot in attracting investment, gradually becoming a key national economic zone with industrial clusters of electricity, steel, manufacturing and seaport services.

Ha Tinh’s Chairman Vo Trong Hai noted that the province is emerging as one of the 10 biggest recipients of FDI in the country.

In Ha Tinh, Vingroup has invested in two battery factory projects. The VinES Battery project went into production at the end of 2021 after less than one year of construction, while the second is scheduled to start operating in December this year.

In the future, VinFast and its partners will continue to develop more supporting factories to provide components and parts to VinFast and the market, the automaker stated in a release.

VinFast and its partners will also offer attractive cooperation policies to suppliers to invite them to locate factories in Ha Tinh and participate in VinFast’s supply chain, increasing the localization rate and bolstering Vietnam’s supporting industries.

According to its unaudited financial results for Q3 ending September 30, 2024, VinFast recorded strong Q3 results, delivering 21,912 vehicles, a 66% rise from Q2 and a 115% year-over-year increase. Revenue reached $511.6 million, up 42.2% from Q2 and up 49.3% year-over-year.