Mitsubishi To Take On Three New EV Projects In Thailand

Mitsubishi Motors Corporation plans to submit proposals for three new EV-based projects based in Thailand by the end of this year.

The Bangkok Post reports that proposal for the three EV projects, totalling some 11 billion baht (RM1.3 billion), will be submitted to Thailand’s Board of Investment (BOI) by its December 28th deadline.

Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak confirmed this after meeting Mitsubishi's chief executive Osamu Masuko, and Morikazu Chokki, president and chief executive of Mitsubishi Motors Thailand during the global launch of the Thai-made new Mitsubishi Triton.

The three EV based projects consist of a plug-in hybrid EV manufacturing project worth 5 billion baht, and two other battery and hybrid EV projects totaling 6 billion baht.

Mr Somkid also added that Mitsubishi’s investment is geared towards full-scale EV manufacturing, and will contribute to a faster than expected EV manufacturing subsector growth in the country.

Mitsubishi is the latest in a line of automotive manufacturers that have taken advantage of Thailand’s incentive scheme which grants corporate tax and certain import duty exemptions, in line with the nation’s aspirations to become the ASEAN region’s primary EV production hub.

So far, Nissan, Honda, and Toyota have secured the BOI’s hybrid EV scheme, and Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and SAIC Motor have secured the plug-in hybrid EV schemes.

Globally, Mitsubishi's range of electrified vehicles include the Outlander PHEV and two-fully electric models, the i-MiEV, and Minicab-i-MiEV.