VinFast has shipped off the first batch of electric vehicles (EVs) to North America, sending 999 VF8 SUVs on the Panamanian charter ship Silver Queen, which was emblazoned with the VinFast logo for the occasion.
According to VinFast, the 999 EVs are are on their way to California, where they are expected to arrive in about 20 days after departing from Haiphong, Vietnam on Friday.
If all goes according to plan, VinFast will start the first deliveries in the US before the end of the year.
The automaker says Canadian and European deliveries will begin in early 2023.
“The export of the first 999 VF 8s is a significant event for VinFast and Vingroup and a proud historical milestone for the Vietnamese automotive industry. It affirms that Vietnam has successfully produced high-quality standards electric vehicles that are ready to compete in the international market. We hope that, when VinFast’s smart electric vehicles roll out on the streets around the world, it will help promote the image of a new, dynamic and progressive Vietnam to the global audience,” Mr. Nguyen Viet Quang, Vice Chairman and CEO of Vingroup, said.
VinFast says this batch of 999 VF8 vehicles is the first of many to come with approximately 65,000 global orders for the electric SUV and its bigger brother, the VF9.
The VF9 is not expected to land in the hands of customers until some time in the first quarter of 2023.
