Thailand’s Board of Investment has just approved 24 projects of car manufacturers for the production of electric vehicles, including 6 plug-in hybrid electric vehicles projects, 13 battery electric vehicles projects, and 5 hybrid electric vehicles projects. The approved project’s combined capacity is over 500,000 units per year.
These projects involve companies like Mitsubishi, Sammitr Group, BMW, FOMM, and Nissan Motors. Crucially, Thailand is home to South East Asia’s largest automotive production hub, and has no local content requirement for the auto industry, making supply chain management more convenient for global manufacturers.
In a separate development, Taiwanese multinational electronics contract manufacturer Foxconn announced a partnership with state-run energy group PTT Plc to make electric cars in Thailand. The two companies have signed an agreement to develop electric vehicles and related components for the Thai market.
Additionally, Great Wall Motors has also started vehicle production in Thailand. The production plant is located in Rayong, with an annual production capacity of 80,000 vehicles. The company is looking to offer nine models in the market within three years, with the majority of them being electric vehicles.
(Sources: Detective News, Bangkok Post, China Daily)
