Vietnam car company Vingroup starts work on $174 million EV battery plant

Vietnam's biggest conglomerate Vingroup said on Sunday it had started building a $174 million battery cell plant for its VinFast electric vehicles business so the company can own its battery supply chain.

VinFast became the country's first fully fledged domestic car manufacturer when its gasoline-powered models built under its own badge hit the streets in 2019.

It is betting on the U.S. market, where its electric SUVs and a battery leasing model are expected to make their debut next year. In October, the Ha Tinh local authorities said plant was expected to be a $387 million investment and on a 12.6 hectare plot.

"This is in the focus of VinFast's localisation strategy of supply," said Thai Thi Thanh Hai, vice chair of Vingroup and vice-chair of the board of VinFast. "The strategy enables us to own our supply chain of batteries and parts."

The company said it is looking to produce 100,000 battery packs per year in a first phase and then upgrade its capacity to one million.