
GAC Aion New Energy Automobile, an electric vehicle manufacturer under Guangzhou Automobile Corporation (GAC), expects to gain benefits from the continual growth of Thailand's EV market, following the recent opening of a 2.3-billion-baht EV assembly plant in Rayong.
The company plans to produce up to 70,000 EVs a year over the long term for domestic sales and export, said Ma Haiyang, general manager of GAC Aion Southeast Asia.
He believes Thailand is a high-potential market for EVs under the government's EV promotion policy, which grants incentive packages to manufacturers to stimulate production and consumption of the vehicles.
The government set a goal for battery EVs to comprise 30% of total car manufacturing by 2030 through the production of 725,000 zero-emission cars, 675,000 electric motorcycles and 34,000 electric buses and trucks.
From January to May, the number of newly registered battery EVs rose by 31.6% year-on-year to 43,921 units while new hybrid EV registrations surged by 53.4% year-on-year to 59,317 units, according to the Federation of Thai Industries, citing statistics from the Department of Land Transport.
"Our factory in Thailand will produce 20,000 EVs in the initial phase, with plans to increase production to 70,000 units in the future, depending on market demand," said Mr Ma.
GAC Aion intends to be among the top three EV brands in Thailand.
Last year, the company announced it planned to sell a number of its Aion Y Plus vehicles in the country. This sports utility vehicle is priced between 1.06 and 1.2 million baht.
Thailand is the first country in which the company has invested outside of China, and there are plans to incrementally increase investments in Thailand in the future, he said.
The company unveiled a strategic business plan in 2023 to invest roughly 6 billion baht in Thailand's EV sector over the next 3-5 years.
This amount includes the development of an EV manufacturing plant, a battery factory and additional facilities to bolster sales both domestically and in the export market.
GAC Aion is also looking to broaden its market presence in other Asean countries, including Vietnam, Singapore and Myanmar, where there is significant growth potential for EVs.