Perfekt integriert: Auf 400 Hektar Fläche soll das neue Montagewerk entstehen, das später innerhalb des Bio Hub-Areals nicht nur für den lokalen thailändischen Markt fertigen soll . Foto: Aiways
With an investment of over 40 million euros and the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with Bio Hub Asia, Aiways cooperation partner Phoeni EV is laying the foundation for an assembly plant in Thailand that will produce the first locally produced units of the Aiways U5 SUV and the Aiways U6 SUV Coupe as early as 2023.
Bio Hub Asia in Chachoengsao province is the first vertically integrated “Bio-Circular-Green-Economy” industrial area in Thailand and Southeast Asia. The project aims to optimise the use of resources, at low cost and without pollution. The planning is based on the establishment of 54 sustainable factories in various sectors: From chemicals to energy, medicine and health, to a research and development centre for sustainable innovations.
With over 400 hectares of floor space for the vehicle assembly plant and the battery assembly plant, a significant share of Bio Hub Asia is reserved for Aiways and Phoenix EV. Completion of the first phase of construction is planned as early as 2023, allowing the first vehicle to be assembled. Phoenix EV CEO Sakonsak Sirachaiyasit plans a pilot series of 600 vehicles next year.
The benefits of local production in the Bio Hub promoted by the Board of Investment of Thailand (BOI) and Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) are manifold. In addition to direct fiscal incentives, the exemption from import duties in particular ensures market-oriented pricing. With its assembly plant in Chachoengsao, Aiways is the first Chinese manufacturer in a sustainable environment and is thus accelerating the transformation of the “Detroit of Asia” – Thailand is the largest automotive hub in Southeast Asia and the tenth largest vehicle manufacturing country in the world – towards a lower carbon footprint.
For Aiways, this step into Thailand also means another milestone in the company’s history. During the “signing ceremony”, the first drivable prototypes of the right-hand drive version of the Aiways U5 SUV were shown, which will also roll off the production line at the new plant in the future. The RHD version will not only be limited to the Thai market; as announced, the Aiways U5 SUV and, a little later, the Aiways U6 SUV coupé will also be rolled out in other markets with left-hand traffic from 2023. www.ai-ways.eu
