Recently, VinFast’s Chairwoman, Ms. Le Thi Thu Thuy, attended and spoke at a conference organized by Nikkei and the Financial Times. VinFast is currently striving to make its electric vehicles not only serve individuals. Ms. Thuy stated that electrifying public transportation and its usability is a key issue for cities to become more environmentally friendly.
In addition to producing car models, electric motorcycles, and soon electric bicycles for personal use, VinFast also has hundreds of electric buses serving Vietnam’s public transportation system. Moreover, VinFast has also delivered tens of thousands of electric motorcycles to transportation partners such as Grab and Uber.
Ms. Le Thi Thu Thuy – Chairwoman of VinFast.
Ms. Le Thi Thu Thuy said: “We have helped bring [environmentally friendly] public transportation to even those who have never used it. Our mission is to make electric vehicles more accessible to everyone and bring us closer to a green future of transportation.”
She also mentioned that most people in Vietnam use two-wheeled vehicles for commuting on crowded streets.
VinFast’s first models introduced to the Vietnamese public, as well as the world, at the 2018 Paris Motor Show were two gasoline car models. By 2021, the focus has shifted to electric vehicle production, and the company also aims to expand its market globally. Indonesia is the latest market that VinFast officially entered, where it plans to establish a factory expected to start operations in 2026.
In the upcoming plans, markets such as the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, and India are on VinFast’s radar. Ms. Thuy said: “This year is the year we go global.” In the Southeast Asia region specifically, Indonesia is the only country that VinFast has officially announced its entry into, in addition to Vietnam.
According to Ms. Thuy, VinFast is targeting to be present in 50 international markets worldwide by the end of this year. She believes that “electric cars are the future of the automotive industry.”
There are already hundreds of electric buses produced by VinFast in Vietnam’s public transportation system.
The electric vehicle market in Southeast Asia is still developing. Although it accounts for less than 2% of the world’s total vehicle sales, electric vehicle sales in this region have been growing rapidly, which means competition in the electric vehicle market is increasing as smaller car manufacturers face off against giants like BYD from China and Tesla from billionaire Elon Musk.
Similarly, electric vehicle sales in countries like Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Singapore are experiencing significant growth. According to a reputable consulting firm, the value of the electric vehicle business in Southeast Asia is expected to reach between 80 billion USD and 100 billion USD by 2035, an increase of 2 billion USD compared to 2021.
From another perspective, Isao Sekiguchi, Chairman of Nissan Motor in Southeast Asia, believes that the electric vehicle landscape has “changed dramatically” in recent years in emerging markets such as Thailand, the Philippines, and Indonesia. Governments in these countries are promoting the electrification of transportation through supportive policies, making electric vehicles more accessible.
VinFast has introduced right-hand drive versions of cars in Indonesia. These versions will help VinFast reach more markets.
However, according to Mr. Isao Sekiguchi, there are still challenges that the automotive industry needs to overcome, such as maturity level of each market in terms of electricity price and the cost of building charging infrastructure. He said: “We see different growth rates and competitive landscapes in each market.”
The key to reducing carbon emissions is perhaps to introduce the most energy-efficient models, including regular hybrids and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), which are hybrids with external charging capabilities.
