Vietnamese carmaker VinFast and the government of North Carolina announced the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the establishment of the company's first North American manufacturing plant, according to a March 29 news release. The factory will create a manufacturing center with three main areas: electric cars and buses production and assembly, EV batteries production, and ancillary industries for suppliers.

Construction for phase one will start in 2022 and production is expected to start in July 2024 with a capacity of 150,000 vehicles per year. Vehicles to be produced include the VinFast VF 9, a seven-passenger all-electric SUV and the VinFast VF 8, a five-passenger all-electric mid-sized SUV.

"North Carolina is quickly becoming the center of our country's emerging, clean energy economy," said North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper. "VinFast's transformative project will bring many good jobs to our state, along with a healthier environment as more electric vehicles take to the road to help us reduce greenhouse gas emissions."

"Automotive assembly plants are incredible engines for economic growth, due to the positive ripple effects they create across a region's economy," added North Carolina Commerce Secretary Machelle Baker Sanders. "I'm so pleased that VinFast has decided to launch their North America manufacturing operations from our state, and we'll work hard to make sure they find the skilled workforce they'll need to grow and thrive in North Carolina."

Headquartered in Hanoi, VinFast has established operations in the U.S.,  Canada,  Germany,  France, and the Netherlands. It currently provides an ecosystem of EV products in its home country of Vietnam, including e-scooters, electric buses and electric cars, charging station system and green energy solutions.

"North Carolina's strong commitments in building a clean energy economy, fighting climate change and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in transportation make it an ideal location for VinFast to develop its premium, smart and environmentally friendly EVs," said Le Thi Thu Thuy, Vingroup vice chair and VinFast Global CEO. "Having a production facility right in the market will help VinFast to proactively manage its supply chain, maintain stabilized prices and shorten product supply time, making VinFast's Evs more accessible to customers, contributing to the realization of local environmental improvement goals."