Plans to build battery factories in the United States: Vietnamese car companies are ambitious to "dig up Tesla corners"

Reference News Network reported on January 24 that according to the website of Vietnam Express, Vietnamese car company VinFast plans to build a new factory in the United States to produce electric vehicle batteries to achieve its own transformation into a "pure electric vehicle manufacturer".

VinFast, a subsidiary of Vietnam's largest private company, Wenner Group, launched its first fuel model in 2019, making it the country's first full-fledged local car company.

At the end of 2021, VinFast will sell electric vehicles in Vietnam. Then, in early January, the company issued a statement saying it would stop producing gasoline-powered cars and switch to making pure electric vehicles.

VinFast has placed a lot of bets in the U.S. market, hoping that its electric SUV and battery rental models can compete with industry giants such as Tesla and General Motors and attract more American consumers.

"We will also build our own 'gigafactory' in the United States," Vinfast Vice Chairman and Global CEO of VinFast, Mr. Lai, said not long ago at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Of course, she was referring to new battery factories, not car manufacturers. For now, the company still relies on sourcing batteries from suppliers.

In December 2021, Wenner Group invested US$174 million to build a battery factory in Vietnam, planning to initially produce 100,000 vehicle battery packs per year and increase its production capacity to 1 million.

VinFast is preparing to start production of electric vehicles in the United States by the end of 2024 and is seeking to build another electric vehicle factory in Germany. "The era of transporting cars around the world is over, especially after the outbreak, and we have to keep factories close to the market to win customers," VinFast said in a statement.

VinFast announced that the electric SUV it produces will start at $41,000 in the United States and will apply blockchain technology to record orders and confirm user ownership. By comparison, a Tesla SUV sells for about $50,000.

Wenner Group said it aims to sell 42,000 electric vehicles by 2022. After disclosing VinFast's electric car lineup and electrification plans, Wenner Group's stock price rose by 5.8% at one point. It is also reported that VinFast also plans to list in the United States this year. (Compilation/Ling Feng)