On Wednesday 7 August, the Board of Investment of Thailand issued a statement approving South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Company's plan to build a factory to assemble electric vehicles and batteries in Thailand.
Hyundai Motor has partnered with Thonburi Automotive Assembly Plant on the project. The new plant will be located in the South East Bangkok. It is scheduled to be completed by 2026. Electric vehicles and the corresponding number of EV batteries will be assembled locally in the future. Hyundai will invest 1 billion baht (about US$28 million) in this project. Considering the relatively small investment, SMM believes that the battery plant should be a battery pack assembly line rather than a cell production facility.
The Thai government is committed to making the country a leading country in Southeast Asia for electric vehicles and their upstream & downstream industries. In recent years, 18 automakers from China, Japan and Europe have planned or completed the opening of factories in Thailand under the Thai government's 'EV3.5 programme' and other policies support. Thailand has also attracted several manufacturers to invest in upstream and downstream products for electric vehicles, such as lithium-ion batteries.
According to the Thai government's forecast, electric vehicles will account for at least 30% of the country's total motor vehicle production by 2030. SMM expects more industry chain-related companies to set up their facilities in Thailand in the future.
