President Marcos announced on Monday, Jan. 29, that Vietnam’s largest private company has interests to bring its electric vehicles (EVs) and battery-manufacturing facility to the Philippines.
President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. speaks before the Filipino community in Vietnam on Monday, Jan. 29, 2024. (RTVM screenshot)
He said this on the first day of his state visit to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, where he also met with the Filipino community at the Melia Hotel in Hanoi.
Addressing Filipino workers, he told them about Vingroup Company’s intent to enter the Philippine market, and joked that Filipinos currently working there might find themselves as “expat (expatriate)” in the Philippines.
“Kanina lang, nakipag-meeting kami sa Vingroup. Siguro kilala nyo kung sino ang Vingroup, ang iba sa inyo nandun sa Vingroup (Just a while ago, we just had a meeting with Vingroup. Maybe you know Vingroup, some of you are working in Vingroup),” he told the crowd who cheered upon hearing the news.
“Dahil gusto nilang pumasok sa Pilipinas--magiging expat kayo sa Pilipinas (Because they want to enter the Philippines, you will become expats in the Philippines),” he added as the crowd laughed.
The President explained that the company, which has a $21.1. billion market cap as of April 2023 through its subsidiary VinFast, wants to start producing batteries in the Philippines and also has plans to bring its EVs to test the Philippine market.
VinFast, which has a valuation at $15 billion, plans to sell and launch its in the Philippines through dealership business by April 2024.
Marcos said that Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Alfredo Pascual, who is with him in Vietnam, is ironing out the details.
Marcos’s visit to Vietnam, where he is expected to stay until Jan. 31, Wednesday, was planned upon the invitation of President Vo Van Thuong.
There are about 7,000 Filipinos working and residing in Vietnam, with most of them in the professional field and about 3,000 employed as teachers.
Some are also nurses, doctors, garments supervisors, and executives in Filipino companies in Vietnam.
In an interview with Radio Television Malacañang (RTVM), Philippines Ambassador to Vietnam Meynardo Montealegre lauded the Filipino workers’ knowledge and skills in their respective profession that have been instrumental in boosting the economic development of Vietnam.
Aside from Pascual, Marcos was also accompanied by First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, National Security Adviser Eduardo Año, Special Assistant to the President Anton Lagdameo, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr., and representatives from the business sector.