VinFast to invest hundreds of millions to implement own global line of branded EV chargers
VinFast’s founder has announced a new arm called V-Green to build EV chargers, focused on bolstering global access while prioritizing sessions for VinFast drivers, accelerating the Vietnamese automaker’s expansion into new markets.
Just when you think VinFast has already spread itself too thin, it has announced yet another expensive venture into another key segment in electrification. The automotive arm of Vietnamese conglomerate VinGroup is a mere six years old and has only been building BEVs since 2021.
In those three short years, however, we’ve seen the young company introduce several all-electric models with more on the way, initially entering markets in Vietnam alongside expansions to North America, Europe, and beyond.
In addition to its original footprint near Hai Phong, VinFast is erecting EV production facilities in the US, Indonesia, and, most recently, India, all while establishing various partnerships with dealer networks to get its EVs in front of more and more consumers worldwide.
While the automaker fell short of its delivery targets in 2023, revenues rose. However, the company has seen its fair share of growing pains moving so quickly; it maintains plenty of financial runway thanks to its parent company and its affluent Chairman, Pham Nhat Vuong.
A key factor in swaying the masses toward EV adoption is easy access to dependable chargers, so naturally, VinFast will throw money at that segment as well.
VinFast introduces new V-Green line of EV chargers
Per an announcement from VinGroup Chairman and VinFast founder Vuong, the Vietnamese automaker has spun the new V-Green company out of its current charging station development division, funded by Mr. Vuong, who will hold a 90% stake.
V-Green will operate as a global partner to VinFast to develop and implement a worldwide network of EV chargers. The independent investment also gives VinFast more financial leeway to continue expansion into new markets while gaining infrastructural prowess, beginning in its native Vietnam.
In addition to taking over the operations and management of VinFast’s current charging network overseas, V-Green will invest 10 trillion VND (~$404 million) over the next two years to upgrade and expand it. Those chargers will be installed and made available exclusively to VinFast drivers in Vietnam. However, after about five years of operation, the company states it will be open to allowing other EVs to use its chargers. V-Green CEO Nguyen Duc Thanh spoke:
The decision by VinFast’s Founder to establish V-Green is a strategic step to globally support and promote VinFast’s sustainable development. Chairman Pham Nhat Vuong’s willingness to use his personal assets to support V-Green demonstrates this commitment. It reduces VinFast’s infrastructure investment needs and provides maximum support for the EV manufacturer’s rapid development. This affirms a strong determination to promote green transportation in Vietnam and worldwide.
Another goal of V-Green’s initial phase is to seek out land and potential partners worldwide to expand the pending network of VinFast branded chargers to critical markets. That strategy also includes potential partnerships with other established charging networks to offer access to its EV owners in different countries.
This year alone, VinFast is planning to expand to over 50 different territories worldwide.
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The spiritual successor to the beloved Chevy Geo Tracker, production of the new-for-2026 electric Spark EUV has officially begun in Brazil with more than 200 miles of range.
That’s right, kids. To know the Chevy Tracker is to love the Chevy Tracker. The tiny, top-heavy Suzuki-based SUV combined bold colors, fun styling, (relatively) good fuel economy, and real off-road chops (especially in ZR2 trim) with an affordable price tag to make the Tracker an early favorite among the serious rock-crawling crowds.
Like, really
While it’s still too early to tell whether or not the all-new Chevy Spark EUV will come even close to that little proto-SUV, it seems we won’t have to wait much longer to find out – GM Authority reports that production of the 2026 Chevy Spark EUV has officially begun at Comexport’s Planta Automotiva do Ceará (PACE) plant, in the state of Ceará, Brazil.
GM Brazil invested the equivalent of $73 million to get the PACE factory ready to assemble GM’s modern, zero-emissions Chevy crossover for the South American and Middle Eastern markets – an investment big enough to earn a visit from Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who was on-hand for the December 3rd kickoff event.
“It’s not a car factory,” said Comexport Vice President and PACE shareholder, Rodrigo Teixeir. “(The) goal is to develop technology there, not simply assemble a vehicle.”
Production of the new Spark EUV began last week, with production of the equally new Chevy Captiva EV set to begin as early as Q1 of 2026.
2026 Chevy Spark EUV
The Made in Brazil Chevrolet Spark EUV is heavily based on the Chinese Baojun, and is powered by that vehicle’s single 75 kW (101 hp), 180 Nm (130 lb-ft) motor driving the front wheels. Power comes from the Baojun’s 42 kWh LFP battery that, with regenerative braking, is good for up to 360 km (220 miles) on the NEDC driving cycle.
Weirdly, the new Spark is also equipped with a 10.1″ infotainment screen and 8.8″ digital instrument cluster (above) that supports both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto standard – technology that GM claims lead to “unsafe” driver behaviors in North America.
Let us know what you think of the little electric SUV, and whether or not you think it would be a hit in the US (it would) in the comments.
SOURCE: GM Authority; images by GM, Harry Situations.
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A federal judge in Massachusetts today ruled that the Trump administration’s ban on new offshore wind projects in federal waters is illegal.
Judge Patti B. Saris of the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts wrote that Trump’s executive order banning leasing of federal lands and waters for new wind farms is “arbitrary and capricious and contrary to law.”
Attorneys general from 17 states and Washington, DC, filed a lawsuit in May against the memorandum halting federal approvals of wind energy development, which was supported by industry and public interest groups.
The Attorneys general claimed that the halt “harms the States’ efforts to secure reliable, diversified, and affordable sources of energy to meet the ever-increasing demand for electricity; their billions of dollars in investments in supply chains, workforce development, and wind-industry-related infrastructure, including transmission upgrades; and their statutory- and policy-based efforts to protect public health and welfare from harmful air pollutants like nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide, as well as greenhouse-gas emissions.”
Because of Trump’s ban, at least seven offshore wind farms in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic have been paused, as well as several others at earlier stages of development. Offshore wind has been a crucial part of the Northeastern states’ plans to transition to renewables, due to their geography and the plentiful wind in the winter. The region also heavily relies on natural gas, which is subject to price fluctuations.
Ted Kelly, director and lead counsel, US Clean Energy at Environmental Defense Fund, said, “We should not be kneecapping America’s largest source of renewable power, especially when we need more cheap, homegrown electricity. Striking down this unlawful ban gives relief to the communities and workers who need affordable power, local investment and jobs from wind projects that have been stuck in limbo.”
As a result of the Trump administration’s “arbitrary” policies, BloombergNEF reduced its forecast of new offshore wind power coming online by 2035 by 56%. And while the ruling is good news for the wind industry, it doesn’t mean the federal government is required to approve projects. And let’s face it: Foreign renewable companies aren’t exactly going to come running back to the US to do business. (Just today, for example, Denmark’s Eurowind Energy announced it’s shutting its US office, citing “political uncertainty.”) But at least offshore wind is no longer banned.
Oceantic Network CEO Liz Burdock said, “We thank the Attorneys General and the Alliance for Clean Energy New York for taking this case forward to protect American business interests against the politicization of our energy sector.”
Read more: Trump just killed all offshore wind zones as US power needs surge
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