Vietnam’s VinFast opens six new US stores, to launch vehicle plant

VinFast, a Vietnam-based electric vehicle maker, has opened six showrooms in California. It has also secured US$1.2 billion in incentives from the state of North Carolina to build a manufacturing facility.

A VinFast store in Santa Monica, California / Photo credit: VinFast

The company plans to have more than 30 stores in California this year and aims to further expand into other states across the US. VinFast also said it’s the first carmaker to have a factory in North Carolina after receiving the biggest economic incentive package ever from the state.

Its plant will be built in Chatham County with a total investment of US$2 billion in the first phase. The facility will cover over 800 hectares of land and have a capacity of 150,000 vehicles per year. Construction will start later this year and production will begin in July 2024.

VinFast’s showrooms, meanwhile, will include VinFast 1S stores, which are located in shopping malls and focus on sales and display; VinFast 2S stores, which will be found on major streets and offer both parts and service; and VinFast 3S, the largest of the three with full services.

“Electric vehicles, like the ones VinFast will produce in Chatham County, are a critical component of our strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and build North Carolina into a hub for the clean energy economy,” Roy Cooper, the governor of North Carolina, said in a statement.

VinFast was established in 2017 and is a subsidiary of Vingroup, Vietnam’s largest listed company. The firm initially produced traditional combustion engine cars before switching to EVs in early 2022.

Earlier this week, it was reported that VinFast had signed deals with Credit Suisse and Citigroup to raise US$4 billion for its US expansion.

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