Moncure, NC – While there appears to be another setback for VinFast after announcing Friday that they plan on delaying the opening of its $4 billion factory in Moncure, Chatham County, until 2028, a county official still has confidence that the project will come to fruition.
VinFast EV project construction site. July 2023
“While VinFast has announced a delay in the expected opening of its North Carolina facility, we are confident that there is no change in VinFast’s scope or vision for the project here in Chatham County,” Chatham County Manager Dan LaMontagne told Carolina Journal Monday in an emailed statement. “The company claims it remains fully committed to the successful development of its first US production facility in Chatham County, North Carolina. It should be noted that the County will only provide economic incentive grants based on performance measured by the creation of eligible jobs. We look forward to our continued work to complete development of the site and construction of the facility as quickly as possible.”
Kara Lusk, public information officer for the county, said they are still waiting for contractor information, including plumbing and electrical contractors, to release the revised permits.
Lusk said last month that the revised plans for the general assembly building were approved on May 30, and the body shop building plans were approved on June 14.
“This decision (to delay the opening in North Carolina) will allow the company to optimize its capital allocation and manage its short-term spending more effectively, focusing more resources on supporting near-term growth targets and strengthening existing operations,” officials said in a release.
VinFast’s focus has shifted to Asia, including recently breaking ground on a new EV assembly plant in Indonesia, almost a year to the date that they broke ground in Chatham County.
But this is not the first time that the Vietnamese electric vehicle maker has delayed opening its North Carolina plant, leaving many to speculate if it ever will.
They first announced plans to open the plant in March 2022, with an opening planned for this month. In March 2023, they announced that the opening would be delayed until 2025, and now, 2028.
Officials said that 7,500 jobs would be created and 150,000 vehicles per year could be built in Phase 1 of the project.
Unfortunately, the company has had its share of ups and downs, with the downs figuring more prominently.
A 995,500-square-foot building was originally planned for the general assembly facility, but in December, the square footage was scaled down to 782,255 square feet.
On April 17, the company submitted revisions for the building, with a new size of 810,100 square feet.
The company has lost billions of dollars, sold over half of its vehicles to itself in 2023, been accused of polluting waterways near its Chatham County site, safety recalls, and bad reviews.
The news of the delay comes after Apple told state officials last month that it wants to delay plans to build a $552 million corporate campus in Research Triangle Park for up to four years.
Both projects received a Job Development Investment Grant or JDIG, approved by the North Carolina Economic Investment Committee (NCEIC). It should be noted that if a company doesn’t hold up its end of the job-creation bargain with the state, it does not receive any grant money.
However, a growing number of agreement terminations have prompted calls to terminate the JDIG program.
The latest, BioAgilytix Labs, LLC, a life science testing company founded in Durham in 2008 and headquartered there, was due to receive up to $18,885,000, spread over 12 years if they held up their end of the agreement that was announced in October 2020.
They announced in March that they couldn’t create the 878 jobs promised under the agreement.
Also in play with the VinFast project are the homes, businesses, and a church that will be lost to the wrecking ball to make way for the project.
For Phase 1 of the project, Merry Oaks Baptist Church, along with three businesses and eleven homes, was scheduled to be relocated for a new highway that is needed for access in and out of the site. Phase 2 is estimated to impact an additional two businesses and 16 homes.
Theresa Opeka is the Executive Branch reporter for the Carolina Journal.