Chayut Setboonsarng and Devjyot Ghoshal
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Chinese automakers, buoyed by strong sales of electric vehicles, will be in the spotlight at the Bangkok International Motor Show this week, highlighting a growing challenge to Japanese auto giants that have long dominated Thailand’s auto market.
Chinese automakers such as Zeekr and Geely’s Xpeng (NYSE:) Motors plan to introduce their latest electric vehicles to Thai customers when they debut at the Bangkok Motor Show, a week-long exhibition that opens to the public on Wednesday.
At Monday’s media preview, electric vehicle newcomers showcased their vehicles and technology in beautiful booths, shoulder to shoulder with market leaders such as Toyota Motor (NYSE:) are household names in Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy.
Hangzhou-headquartered Zeekr will launch two electric vehicle models in Thailand in June and open 10 showrooms in the country this year as part of a broader expansion in Southeast Asia, said Vice President and Head of Emerging Markets Mars Chen.
“There is a lot of room in the premium segment for a new player like us,” he said.
Zeekr will compete with Chinese companies such as BYD (SZ:) and Great Wall Motor, which currently hold the largest share of Thailand’s electric vehicle market.
Guangzhou-headquartered Xpeng, which is displaying a flying self-driving car at its booth, plans to open five car showrooms in Thailand this year to offer higher-end electric vehicles, said Elsa Zhang, a senior manager at its overseas business.
Others, such as Changan Automobile, a state-owned automaker that will begin production of electric vehicles at a plant in Thailand in early 2025, are targeting the lower end of the market: a two-door electric vehicle costing around 500,000 baht ($13,728) was launched in early 2025 . Monday.
HOT COMPETITION
Overall, Chinese automakers have pledged to invest more than $1.44 billion in production facilities in Southeast Asia’s largest auto manufacturing hub. Thailand plans to convert about 30% of its annual vehicle production to electric vehicles by 2030.
The expansion of Chinese electric vehicle makers into Thailand comes amid increasing competition at home, where automakers are seeking to cut prices.
Thais bought 73,500 battery electric vehicles in 2023, or about 9% of domestic vehicle sales, and that figure is expected to double by the end of 2024, according to a forecast by the Federation of Thai Industry.
Local electric vehicle production capacity is expected to reach 100,000 vehicles by the end of 2024 as new plants, mainly from Chinese automakers, come online, auto industry spokesman FTI Surapong Paisitpattanapong said.
Thailand produced 164 battery electric vehicles last year.
“Sales of electric vehicles are rising while sales of combustion engine cars are falling,” Surapong said, referring to vehicles with internal combustion engines and attributing the changes to cheaper electric vehicle models.
“At this price for an ICE car, you can get the best EV model from several brands. Higher gas prices also help electric vehicles.”
But market leaders such as Toyota, Isuzu Motors and Honda Motor Co (NYSE:) is also working to maintain its position.
Major Japanese automakers intend to invest 150 billion baht ($4.34 billion) in Thailand over five years.
Isuzu plans to use Thailand as a production base for the electric version of its D-MAX pickup truck, with the goal of starting exports in 2025, a Thai government official said last week.
($1 = 36.4200 baht)