- VinFast has once again delayed production at a promised plant in North Carolina.
- Production was originally slated to begin this month, but it had been pushed back to 2025 and now 2028.
- The delay comes as the company has only sold 21,747 vehicles in the first half of the year.
VinFast had a disastrous launch in the United States and things haven’t gotten much better as electric vehicle adoption is slowing. Given these developments, the company has announced a “strategic decision” to hit the brakes on their North Carolina manufacturing facility.
Originally announced in March of 2022, the plant was full of promise as vehicles were slated to roll off the assembly line in July of 2024. The facility was supposed to build up to 150,000 VF 8s and VF 9s annually.
More: VinFast Breaks Ground On U.S. Factory, Set To Begin Production In 2025
Needless to say, those plans didn’t pan out despite a $1.2 billion incentive package from the state of North Carolina. However, a groundbreaking ceremony was eventually held in the summer of 2023 and the company announced the plant would also build the VF 7. At the time, VinFast said production was expected to begin in 2025.
However, as local publications have reported, VinFast has drastically reduced the size of the plant and not much has occurred since the original groundbreaking ceremony. As a result, the site was little more than a patch of dirt when WRAL visited earlier this year.
Fast forward to today and VinFast is now saying production is expected to begin in 2028 – a full four years behind schedule. The company didn’t say much about the delay, but claimed the move would enable them to “optimize its capital allocation and manage its short-term spending more effectively, focusing more resources on supporting near-term growth targets and strengthening existing operations.”
Chairwoman Madam Thuy Le went into a little more detail by saying, “We have adopted a more prudent outlook that is carefully calibrated to near-term headwinds, taking into full consideration the realities of market volatility and potential challenges.” Despite the setback, she claimed “Our robust long-term strategy and proven execution capabilities position us well to meet the evolving needs of the dynamic global EV market.”
Besides hitting the brakes on U.S. production, VinFast revealed they delivered 12,058 vehicles in the second quarter which was a 26% improvement from a year ago. The company went on to say they’re expecting to sell approximately 80,000 vehicles globally, which would be a huge jump from the 34,855 vehicles delivered in 2023.
That number might be optimistic as VinFast only delivered 21,747 vehicles in the first half of the year. As a result, the company would have to nearly triple their rate of sales to hit their year-end goal.
