Highlights
- Vietnam's EV market heats up as BYD takes aim at domestic EV leader VinFast
- BYD recently launched its first EV sedan model in Japan.
- It is also set to open a Thai factory and has recently announced a $1 billion investment in Turkey for an EV plant.
Manila: Chinese EV giant BYD has announced on Thursday that it’s setting up shop in Vietnam, opening dealerships and even planning a factory, directly competing with loccal champion VinFast.
The initial product line-up of three models includes the compact crossover Atto 3 – this will double to six models from October 2024, according to Vo Minh Luc, chief operations officer for BYD Vietnam.
Initial product lineup includes the Atto 3 crossover.
BYD is in talks to optimise its planned Vietnamese electric car factory.
All BYD models for Vietnam will be imported for the time being, according to a Reuters report.
Vietnam’s government said last year BYD had decided to build a factory to manufacture electric cars in the north of the country but those plans have slowed, the company that operates the industrial park in the area said in March.
Challenge to VinFast
The move could pose a challenge to Vietnam’s domestic EV maker VinFast. The latter sold 32,000 EVs in 2023, but mostly to an affiliate.
BYD, which started off as a battery maker for mobile devices, has risen to become the world's largest electric vehicle manufacturer.
Analysts predict strong growth in Vietnam's EV market, with sales reaching over 2.5 million by 2036.
Atto 3 vs VF6:
The Atto 3 will be priced from 766 million dong ($30,300), somewhat higher than the 675 million dong starting price for VinFast's VF 6.
While VinFast, like BYD, has abandoned gasoline vehicles, it lags behind its Chinese competitor. BYD was ranked as the best-selling EV manufacturer worldwide after selling over three million units in 2023 after overtaking Tesla as the best-selling electric car maker in the previous year.
BYD's sales volume translates into a market share of around 22 percent.
New markets
However, the Vietnamese electric vehicle market holds promise, with HSBC predicting a surge in annual sales from under one million in 2024 to over 2.5 million by 2036. This growth presents a significant opportunity for both domestic and international carmakers.
And despite its successes both at home and other market, BYD is not about to rest on its laurels.
It recently launched its first EV sedan model in Japan. It is also set to open a Thai factory as new EU tariffs on China EVs kick in.
It has also recently announced a $1 billion investment in Turkey for an EV plant.
On July 14, BYD opened its store in the heart of Phnom Penh, Cambodia's capital, starting with DENZA D9 deliveries. The Denza D9 is a battery electric and plug-in hybrid minivan produced by Denza, a Chinese automaker which is a joint venture between BYD and Daimler (Mercedes-Benz).
