HANOI — Vietnamese electric vehicle (EV) maker VinFast on Thursday said its fourth-quarter net loss deepened 3.4% from the previous three months however it goals to just about triple vehicle sales this 12 months because it expands into latest markets.
VinFast’s net losses in the ultimate quarter of 2023 reached $650.1 million, also 1.3% higher than the identical period of 2022.
It plans to extend deliveries to 100,000 units this 12 months, compared with the virtually 35,000 made in 2023, when it missed a 50,000 unit goal because of slow EV adoption in some regions and increased price war.
“This 12 months, we expand globally and have all of the vehicles, including the right-hand drive model. So we’re confident that we’re going to realize the guidance,” chairwoman Le Thi Thu Thuy told Reuters after the earnings were released.
Other automakers, in contrast, have slashed EV sales targets and curtailed investment plans because of weakening demand in major markets reminiscent of the USA.
VinFast, which launched U.S. sales in March last 12 months with its VF 8 sport utility vehicle, relies heavily on domestic demand, with around 70% of deliveries going to its affiliate Green SM (GSM), a taxi operator and leasing provider backed by VinFast CEO Pham Nhat Vuong.
Fewer than 1,000 units were sold in North America, Thuy said, adding that latest dealerships would boost VinFast’s sales this 12 months in comparison with its direct sales model.
Fourth-quarter revenue reached $437 million, missing a mean analyst estimate of $570.9 million, in line with LSEG data. Full-year revenue was up 91% at $1.2 billion.
India and Indonesia
Founded in 2017 and making EVs since 2021, VinFast has announced quite a few EV growth plans overseas. It’s constructing a factory in North Carolina, which is predicted to launch in 2025, and planning its first manufacturing facilities in India.
Thuy said the corporate was targeting “two big markets”, Indonesia and India, where it will implement a battery leasing scheme with customers paying a monthly fee the identical or lower than the gasoline cost for equivalent vehicles.
“We expect to launch factories in India and Indonesia in 2026,” Thuy said, adding that until then its Vietnam plant is in a position to supply cars to the U.S and other markets.
VinFast’s market capitalisation surged to $85 billion — higher than that of legacy U.S. automaker Ford — after its Nasdaq debut in August, however it has since slumped to $12 billion, with its U.S. market entry coinciding with intensifying price war led by market leader Tesla.
Shares in VinFast, backed by Vietnam’s largest conglomerate Vingroup were down 2.66% in premarket trading.
In line with Thuy, after a blackout period ends on Feb. 26, VinFast will start a fundraising process because it looks to extend the variety of shares available for public trading to 10-20% by the top of the 12 months from around 2% currently.
This Article First Appeared At www.autoblog.com
