Marcos welcomes Vingroup interest
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday welcomed the possible entry of Vietnam’s Vingroup Co., which he said was looking at battery or electric vehicle investments in the Philippines.
“They want to enter the Philippines because they are interested [in producing] batteries, which is a very important technology today. They also want to bring [in] EVs or electric vehicles,” he said in a meeting with the Filipino community in Vietnam.
“This is something Secretary Fred Pascual of DTI (Department of Trade and Industry) is working on,” added Marcos, who was on a two-day state visit.
Pascual, in a statement, said Vingroup’s interest was in line with the government’s push to promote EV use via the public utility vehicle modernization program and the Department of Energy’s e-trike project.
He also encouraged Vingroup, Vietnam’s largest conglomerate, to also “explore other investment opportunities in the tourism and health care sectors.”
The Trade department said the Board of Investments had assisted Vingroup subsidiary VinFast Auto Ltd. during a visit to the Philippines.
It added that meetings had been conducted with local mining companies, the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. and the Department of Transportation.
In Vietnam, Marcos met with Vingroup executives led by Chairman Pham Nhat Vuong, and Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Nguyen Viet Quang.
He noted that the Philippines could support battery production given its reserves of nickel, cobalt and copper, and likewise touted the country’s relatively young, skilled and educated workforce.