▲Innomotive CEO Seo Gook-hyun and Pudong Original Company CEO Pudong Kwang are taking a photo after signing (Photo courtesy of Innomotive)

Annual scale of up to $100 million, local production of 20,000 units, targeting the ASEAN market
30,000 Vietnamese resorts to be supplied with multi-purpose electric vehicles for local management

Following its entry into the Vietnamese market with its battery-swappable, special-purpose, eco-friendly electric vehicle (PBV), Innomotive is also actively considering building a production line with an annual capacity of 20,000 units, with the ultimate goal of entering the ASEAN market.

Innomotive, a special purpose eco-friendly electric vehicle (PBV) platform company, announced on the 26th that it signed an agreement with Vietnam's PHU DUONG ORIGINAL COMPANY LIMITED on the 21st and will be making full-fledged entry into the Vietnamese market.

Innomotive said that it was able to achieve these results by participating in the automobile parts exhibition held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam as part of the Gwangju Green Car Promotion Agency's 'Demand-based Partner Value Chain Advanced and Self-reliance Package Support Project.'

Itomotive plans to supply multipurpose electric vehicles (classified as ‘farm power transport vehicles’ in Korea) for local management to 30,000 Vietnamese resorts with 650,000 rooms, mainly in the famous resort area of Danang.

PHU DUONG, a local Vietnamese company, is in charge of selecting the resort and installing it on site. Innomotive supplies battery-swappable multi-purpose electric vehicles and battery charging stations, as well as transfers technology related to their local operation.

The two sides plan to improve the vehicle to suit local conditions in Vietnam within the year and then conduct verification tests by supplying battery exchange stations and vehicles to three local resorts, including Da Nang.

We plan to increase marketability by reflecting operational issues and ideas through verification, and begin full-scale supply from 2024.

In addition, in the second half of 2024, work will be carried out for local production in Vietnam, and the company has decided to actively review the establishment of a production line with an annual capacity of 20,000 units, with the ultimate goal of entering the ASEAN market, which has many famous resort destinations.

For this agreement, the Vietnam Korea Business Association (VKBIA, Chairwoman Tran Hai Linh), which actively supported the discovery of local companies, will connect local Vietnamese companies with Korean parts companies and support local commercialization. In addition, it plans to promote joint advancement through active support for commercialization to create a horizontal electric vehicle ecosystem such as the Gwangju Green Car Promotion Agency and the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology and cooperation with eco-friendly electric vehicle parts companies.

Despite numerous adverse factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine War, and the global recession, the ASEAN market is rapidly emerging as Korea's most important export trading partner, with exports expected to increase 14.8% year-on-year to approximately USD 124.9 billion in 2022, imports expected to increase 21.9% year-on-year to approximately USD 82.5 billion, and total trade volume expected to reach approximately USD 207.5 billion, with a trade balance of approximately USD 42.4 billion, the highest ever.

Kim Jong-bae, CEO of Innomotive, said, “With a population of approximately 670 million and an average annual economic growth rate of 5%, Vietnam is the most important partner for expanding the use of eco-friendly transportation in the region, where transportation accounts for 40% of greenhouse gas emissions.”r />
He continued, “In addition to achieving national greenhouse gas reduction targets (NDCs) through CO2 reductions, the transition to low-carbon transportation in developing countries in the Asian region can also provide opportunities for economic growth, such as the production of products related to electric vehicles, as well as health protection through improved atmospheric environment and strengthened energy security,” expressing his expectations for the growth potential of Korean companies in the ASEAN market.