Vietnam-China joint venture to build $800 mln automobile manufacturer plant

An automobile manufacturer plant worth more than US$800 million with a capacity of producing 200,000 vehicles per year by Geleximco (Vietnam) and Omoda & Jaecoo (China) joint venture will be built in the northern province of Thai Binh. 

The first Chinese electric vehicle maker to set up plant in Vietnam

Vietnam’s trade ministry said on Thursday that automaker Chery (CHERY.UL) had signed a joint venture agreement with a local company to set up an $800 million plant, becoming the first Chinese electric vehicle maker to set up a facility in Vietnam.

With 1,881,316 vehicles sold in 2023, Chery is a Chinese state-owned automaker and is the third largest one in China. The manufacturing plant will be jointly established by Chery’s Omoda & Jaecoo unit and Vietnamese company Geleximco in the coastal province of Thai Binh, the ministry said in a statement following a signing ceremony. The two sides agreed Thursday to set up a joint venture for a plant that can produce 200,000 vehicles a year, under the Omoda & Jaecoo brand.

Project with 3 phases by 2035

The project will consist of three phases:

• The $220-million first phase of the three-phase project is scheduled to be completed in the first quarter of 2026, at which stage it will have an annual output of 50,000 units.
• The second, $200 million phase will increase the plant’s annual output to 100,000 vehicles in the 2031-2033 period. 
• The final $380 million phase is envisaged to increase annual production to 200,000 units in the 2034-2035 period.

A win-win deal

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien noted that the production and assembly of electric vehicles (EV) and hybrid vehicles had become a global trend. It would help Vietnam achieve carbon neutrality by 2030, he added.

By investing in Vietnam, businesses can not only get access to a big market with 100 million people but also a larger one of five billion people, thanks to Vietnam’s participation in various free trade agreements, Dien added.

According to Vu Van Tien, CEO and chairman of Geleximco, the collaboration is evidence of the strengthening bilateral relationship between China and Vietnam. He said the joint venture aimed to export its vehicles thanks to many free trade agreements that Vietnam has signed, he added.

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