Op-Ed: VinFast is Refocusing on Asia, Planning to Sell 300,000 Vehicles - CleanTechnica

Vietnamese automaker VinFast is refocusing its strategy toward Asia, specifically targeting India and Southeast Asia as core growth markets, with an ambitious goal of selling 300,000 vehicles annually. This figure represents a critical breakeven point where fixed costs in manufacturing, R&D, and retail begin to be meaningfully diluted. Despite this pivot, VinFast insists it will not abandon the North American market but will instead restructure its operations there. The company initially prioritized North America due to its purchasing power and market volume, followed by Europe for its sustainability appeal, and lastly Asia, which was considered easier to penetrate. However, after investing billions in establishing itself in the U.S. and Canadian EV markets, VinFast faced significant challenges, including annual net losses exceeding $3 billion and U.S. sales never rising beyond low four-figure annual volumes. Key obstacles included the lack of eligibility for the $7,500 federal EV tax credit, which placed VinFast vehicles at a price disadvantage compared to domestic and