Bangkok (NNT/VNA) - Thailand’s PTT and China’s Foxconn have established joint venture company Horizon Plus to manufacture electric vehicles (EVs) in Thailand in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC).
The move is expected to propel the Kingdom as the EV manufacturing hub of ASEAN.
Dr Buranin Rattanasombat, PTT’s Senior Executive Vice President on Innovation and New Ventures, said the joint venture company will establish an EV production plant on a 350-rai plot of land in the special economic zone.
He also said the plant would be able to produce the first lot of EV sedans in 2024. The factory will have an initial capacity to produce about 50,000 EVs per year before increasing its capacity to 150,000 vehicles per year in 2030, in order to meet demand locally and within the ASEAN region.
Dr Buranin added that the joint venture signifies Thailand’s prowess in manufacturing Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles, as well as its potential to produce EVs in the future. He said FOXCONN’s expertise and technology will greatly reduce the time and cost for manufacturing EVs in Thailand.
He further noted that having a local EV factory will enable the Kingdom to make prototype EVs, including sedans and buses, and will eventually give the public access to a wider range of EVs in the future.
The joint venture also satisfies the policy of the Thai government to promote the production and use of EVs, elevates EV manufacturing as an industry, and moves Thailand towards achieving carbon neutrality./.
