“Which Province Becomes Vietnam’s Automotive Manufacturing ‘Bigwig’ Post-Merger?”

Located centrally within Southeast Asia, Vietnam boasts advantageous connectivity to significant markets such as China, Japan, South Korea, and other ASEAN countries. This strategic position reduces transportation costs and optimizes supply chains for automotive businesses, earning Vietnam the nickname “magnet” for major players in the automotive industry.

In just under two years, Vietnam has witnessed a surge in manufacturing brands planning to establish factories. Some notable newcomers include OMODA & JAECOO, a joint venture between Geleximco Group and Chery International Group, which will construct a factory in the Hung Phu Industrial Park, Hung Yen Province (formerly known as Thai Binh Province), with an annual capacity of 200,000 vehicles and a total investment of nearly VND 2,000 billion.

The Tasco and Geely joint venture for automobile assembly boasts a designed capacity of 75,000 vehicles per year in its initial phase, initially assembling Lynk & Co and Geely Auto-branded vehicles.

Another noteworthy addition is the Thanh Cong Viet Hung automobile factory, located in the Viet Hung Industrial Park (Ha Long city, Quang Ninh Province), with a designed capacity of 120,000 vehicles per year. This factory is the first in Vietnam and Southeast Asia to specialize in assembling and manufacturing automobiles under the Škoda Auto brand, one of the largest automotive brands in the Czech Republic. It also marks the first automobile factory project in Quang Ninh Province.

On January 14, 2025, Kim Long Motor Hue Joint Stock Company and Changan Automobile Group (China) announced plans to build a 5-7-seater passenger car factory named Kim Long Truong An Vietnam. The factory is expected to break ground this year in the Kim Long Motor Hue Automobile Production and Assembly Industrial Park. Spanning an area of 30 hectares, the factory will have a capacity of 50,000 vehicles per year, utilizing Changan’s complete production technology.

The automotive factory landscape has undergone a noticeable transformation following the merger. Previously, Vinh Phuc and Thai Binh provinces led in the number of automobile factories. However, after the merger, Hung Yen Province, resulting from the combination of Hung Yen and Thai Binh, will host three significant automobile factories: TMT Motor, Tasco and Geely, and Omoda and Jaecoo. Together, these factories are expected to achieve a total capacity of over 300,000 vehicles per year upon completion.