Vietnamese EV maker VinFast gets permit for US factory construction

Vietnamese electric vehicle maker VinFast on Friday announced that it has received a key environmental permit to construct its first EV assembly plant in the US at a cost of $4 billion. The company has received an ‘Air Permit’ and is yet seeking other permits for the construction of its Chatham Country factory, but it will start a tender for construction.

With the Air Permit, the company is now allowed to start the first phase of the construction of the factory. "We will start construction soon," VinFast said in a statement, without specifying any time frame, Reuters reported.

The application foe the Air Permit was completed by the company in December last year and received an approval on February 9, according to the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality website. The company has also applied for a permit from the US Army Corps of Engineers designed to minimise damage to water quality and wetlands.

The Vietnamese EV company plans to start operations in the North Carolina plant as soon as 2024, with the factory expected to create more than 7,000 jobs. Phase one of the project includes a $2 billion investment in a factory capable of producing 150,000 vehicles a year. The second phase of the construction will focus on battery production.

Meanwhile VinFast is scheduled to deliver its first batch of cars shipped from Vietnam to US customers from late February.

VinFast is waging a war in the US against Tesla, and apart from the construction of its factory there, the company is also considering a number of promotions to make its offerings more lucrative for potential buyers. While Tesla has been offering price cuts, it is not yet clear if the said promotions from VinFast will also include price cuts.

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