VinFast Breaks Ground On Its EV Plant In North Carolina

VinFast's first EV factory outside Vietnam will build three electric crossovers from 2025, a year later than originally planned.

VinFast groundbreaking ceremony at North Carolina EV plant

Dan Mihalascu

By: Dan Mihalascu

Jul 31, 2023 at 11:01am ET

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As promised earlier this month, Vietnamese automaker VinFast officially broke ground at its electric vehicle plant located in Chatham County, North Carolina on July 28.

According to the company, the groundbreaking ceremony that took place at the site marked a significant milestone toward VinFast's global expansion and its supply chain development in North America – the North Carolina factory is its first electric vehicle factory outside of Vietnam.

Located within Chatham County's Triangle Innovation Point, VinFast's US factory project will become the first EV manufacturing facility in North Carolina and the largest economic development initiative in the state's history.

VinFast pledged to invest up to $2 billion in Phase 1 of the project, which spans an area of approximately 1,800 acres (728 hectares) and is divided into five main production areas. Those include a body shop, general assembly, press shop, paint shop, and an energy center. The company said there will also be other functional facilities in the factory premises.

VinFast plans to build three electric crossovers at the plant in the initial phase from 2025 (a year later than originally planned): the VF7, VF8, and VF9. The Vietnamese automaker expects the factory to have a production capacity of 150,000 vehicles per year in Phase 1. Last year the automaker said the total investment at the facility over four years would reach $4 billion.

Gallery: VinFast Groundbreaking Ceremony

VinFast Groundbreaking Ceremony (8/28)

VinFast VF8 Interior VinFast VF8 in Red VinFast VF8 in White VinFast Groundbreaking Event

The supplier base for components and materials will be primarily concentrated in the US, Vietnam, and a few other countries, the company said. As for future expansion and updates for the North Carolina plant, VinFast said it would identify those in the next phase.

"Today's event marks a new milestone for VinFast, affirming our commitment to the North American market. Not only will this project create thousands of jobs and contribute to North Carolina's economic development, but VinFast's electric vehicles produced here will also bring additional economic benefits to consumers. We also look forward to contributing to the development of the North Carolina community – our second home – during the production and business operation here."

Le Thi Thu Thuy, CEO of VinFast

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The event was attended by North Carolina Governor, Roy Cooper, Vietnamese Ambassador to the US, Nguyen Quoc Dung, and representatives from state and federal governments along with VinFast partners, customers, industry experts, and journalists.

VinFast has appointed Clayco as the general contractor and construction management company to lead the project and will begin the bidding process to select subcontractors soon.