Vietnamese electric vehicle maker VinFast plans to build a US$2 billion factory in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, with groundbreaking scheduled for this Sunday.

The company signed an MoU with the state government last month for building the plant in the port city of Thoothukudi.

It will invest $500 million in the first phase of the project.

The plant will help VinFast expand into India and other countries in South Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

Last November Pham Nhat Vuong, chairman of VinFast’s parent company Vingroup, met with Indian entrepreneur Gautam Adani, who in 2022 was briefly the world’s third richest person, to discuss potential tie-ups.

VinFast has also started hiring in India, where it is expected to create 3,000-3,500 jobs.

The Tamil Nadu plant will have a capacity of 150,000 vehicles per year.

It will help promote development of green transportation in India and help the country realize its goal of having EVs account for 30% of all newly registered private cars by 2030.

VinFast has also announced plans to expand into Indonesia, Malaysia and the Middle East.

It will invest a minimum of $1.2 billion in Indonesia with plans to distribute made-in-Vietnam vehicles and build an EV manufacturing plant with a capacity of 30,000 – 50,000 vehicles a year.

GSM, Vuong’s electric taxi company, also announced plans to invest $900 million in Indonesia.

Since switching to EVs in 2022 VinFast has been making a wide range of electric SUVs, motorcycles and buses.