Vietnamese EV maker VinFast says job cuts won’t derail plans to start U.S. production
The Vinfast VF6 all-electric vehicle is on display at the 2022 Los Angeles Auto Show on November 18, 2022 in Los Angeles, California.
Josh Lefkowitz | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Vietnamese electric vehicle maker VinFast told CNBC it’s on track to start production in the U.S. by 2024 even though the company is cutting its headcount in North America.
Vietnam’s first domestic automaker previously announced plans to go public in the U.S.
Just this week, VinFast — the automotive arm of Vietnam’s biggest conglomerate Vingroup — announced it will be cutting jobs in the U.S. in a restructuring exercise that will consolidate its operations across the U.S. and Canada.
“After last year’s observation, we see a lot of similarity in the two markets and consolidating the two markets will allow us to be stronger and more agile,” said Le Thi Thu Thuy, VinFast CEO, in an interview with CNBC’s J.P. Ong on Friday.
The news about the job cuts come on the heels of a Reuters report on Feb. 3 that VinFast will be delaying deliveries to its first customers in the U.S.
We still plan to start the trial production in 2024 as originally planned.
Le Thi Thu Thuy
CEO, VinFast
VinFast shipped its first batch of cars to the U.S. in November, which included 999 VF 8s. It had plans to deliver them by the end of December but has since delayed shipments to February.
Le told CNBC on Friday they have about 12,000 pre-orders in the U.S.
International expansion
The automaker has been ramping up its U.S. expansion to take on American automakers such as Tesla and announced it will be setting up a production plant in North Carolina to manufacture EVs.
Le said the layoffs will not affect the planned timeline for production to commence at its first North American manufacturing plant.
“We are in the final stages of getting a permit to test the construction but the land has already been cleared. The state has already worked on the infrastructure for the land as well,” she told CNBC.
“We still plan to start the trial production in 2024 as originally planned,” Le said. The annual production capacity of the plant is 150,000 electric vehicles, according to the company’s release.
The next markets VinFast plans to target will be in Europe, namely Germany, France and the Netherlands, said the CEO.
However, VinFast vehicles do not currently qualify for the $7,500 tax credit in the U.S. because they are not built in the country, but are built in Vietnam. Prices for the 2023 VinFast VF 8 model start from $40,700.
“We immediately accelerated our plan for the North Carolina plant. Luckily, we had already signed that agreement before the Inflation Reduction Act,” Le said.
“We didn’t see it coming but we always [planned] to have a plant in the U.S. so the IRA increased our manufacturing capability in the U.S. to make sure that our customers will be able to have access to electric vehicles at a reasonable pricing.”
“I believe that in the long run [we are] going to concentrate the manufacturing of electric vehicles as well as the key components of electric vehicles in the U.S.,” Le added.
VinFast IPO plans
VinFast filed for an initial public offering in the U.S. on Dec. 6. They have not disclosed the number nor price of the shares to be traded, according to its prospectus. It is also not known when they exactly plan to list.
“We have been watching the intensity of the market and I think this year, the market has been a little bit better. We are ready but we need the market to be more cooperative for us to make the IPO happen,” said Le.
When asked about when the IPO is expected to happen, she said: “When we are ready to talk more about it, we will be happy to share more.”
Slate Auto, a new EV startup backed by Jeff Bezos, has poached a key Tesla manufacturing leader to build its electric pickup truck factory in Indiana.
Napoleon Reyes is a US Marine from Indiana who got a degree in mechanical engineering from Purdue after leaving the force.
He then worked a few years at Subaru and Wabash before joining Tesla’s manufacturing team at the Fremont Factory in 2020.
There, he became part of the Model Y production ramp and was quickly promoted to lead the Model Y General Assembly in Fremont in 2022.
Reyes led Model Y GA, one of the most critical parts of vehicle manufacturing, for more than a year before being promoted again to lead new pilot processes at the factory.
Most recently, he led the launch of the general assembly line for the Model Y refresh.
The new engineering manager announced this week that he is leaving Tesla to join Slate:
A bit late on the post but after nearly 5 years working at Tesla in Fremont, I made the difficult decision to leave the Company and move closer to home with my family. It was an incredible experience being part of multiple line expansions and multiple Model Y program launches. Leading and managing the Model Y Refresh launch for GA in Fremont this year tested me professionally however we ultimately succeeded due to our amazing cross functional team collaboration. It’s been an absolute pleasure working with such great people, and I will forever be proud and thankful for everything we accomplished together.
I will be taking on a new role as Senior Manager, Plant Vehicle Engineering at Slate Auto in Warsaw, In.
Slate emerged from stealth mode earlier this year to unveil a new type of electric pickup truck featuring modular customization and an affordable price.
The company raised over $700 million through two rounds of investments from several different investors, including Jeff Bezos. It is currently raising more, which basically guarantees that it will be able to reach production.
The startup acquired a former printing plant in Warsaw, Indiana. It is currently converting to manufacture its electric pickup with a team from legacy automakers and also several former engineers and leaders from Tesla.
Rich Schmidt, an early Tesla manufacturing director, is the head of manufacturing.
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Genesis is preparing to shake things up with its most luxurious SUV yet, the GV90. Thanks to a new patent filing, we are getting a detailed look at how its Rolls-Royce-style coach doors will work.
New patent reveals Genesis GV90 coach door system
When Genesis first unveiled the full-size SUV at the NY Auto Show last March, it wasn’t the stunning design or advanced tech that caught everyone’s attention. It was the coach doors.
Although we were worried it wouldn’t make it to the production model, like many concepts, the Genesis GV90 will be offered with coach doors.
The ultra-luxe electric SUV was first caught with coach doors earlier this year on a car carrier in South Korea. Just last month, the GV90 was spotted in California with a hinge at the rear to open the coach doors.
After several new patents were filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office for new door latching devices, we are getting a sneak peek at how they are expected to work.
The patents, titled “Cinching Device For Door Latches in Vehicle,” and “Door Latch Device for Vehicles,” give a pretty detailed explanation of how the Genesis GV90’s coach doors will operate. The “Door Latch Device” uses a door striker on the lower side of the door, which is opened or closed by a hinge unit.
Unlike traditional doors, which use the B-pillar for support, the device is attached directly to the door itself, allowing for hinge-like movement.
The cinching device works in a similar way. It’s also attached to the door and part of the vehicle. However, unlike most of its kind, Genesis found a way to use a single cinching device to control multiple units. Again, the device is used for B-pillarless doors that swing open.
Genesis already said that B-pillarless coach doors are now feasible in production vehicles. The patent reveals a glimpse into how the luxury automaker could make it a reality.
Although the Genesis GV90 is expected to be offered with coach doors, they will likely not be standard. Other variants, with traditional door handles, have also been spotted testing in the US and South Korea.
Genesis is expected to launch the GV90 in mid-2026. It will be built at Hyundai’s Ulsan plant in South Korea. The flagship Genesis SUV is scheduled to debut on Hyundai’s new eM platform, which the company said will “provide 50% improvement in driving range.” It will also be loaded with the latest technology, software, connectivity, and Level 3 or higher autonomous driving capabilities.
Source: USPTO
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Environment
Podcast: Tesla Model YL, more Tesla probes and lawsuits, new Nissan Leaf pricing, and more
In the Electrek Podcast, we discuss the most popular news in the world of sustainable transport and energy. In this week’s episode, we discuss the launch of the Tesla Model YL, more Tesla probes and lawsuits, new Nissan Leaf pricing, and more.
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