Following an agreement for an integrated facility in Tamil Nadu, Vietnam-based VinFast said it would begin constructing the EV facility, a big step for the company on its way to the global foray.
According to multiple media outlets, including the Financial Times and VNA, VinFast said on February 21 that it would break ground for the EV facility in Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, on February 25. With an investment of US$500 million, the facility will take five years to be built and have an annual capacity of up to 150,000 units, generating 3,000-3,500 jobs for the state.
The government of Tamil Nadu signed an MoU with VinFast for the facility at the two-day Global Investors Meet held in January in Chennai. In addition to VinFast, other companies committed to investing include Qualcomm, Pegatron, Hyundai, Taiwan-based Hong Fu, and India-based JSW Energy.
According to a company filing released in December 2023, VinFast plans to establish local manufacturing facilities in strategic markets, including the US, Indonesia, and India, to take advantage of local tax benefits and local sourcing, adding that commissioning of the Indonesia and India facilities is expected in 2026 with a total capacity of up to 50,000 cars a year in phase 1 for each facility.
VinFast said it plans to build the Tamil Nadu facility into a first-class EV production hub in the region, not only catering to consumers in India but meeting demands in other South Asian, Middle Eastern, and African countries.
The Times of India, quoting official data from Tamil Nadu, the state is forecasted to have an EV production value of US$40 billion by 2030, including components, raw materials, machinery, tooling, testing, and R&D.
Source: VinFast, October 2024
