Last year Skoda announced that it would be venturing into Vietnam by commencing sales in 2023 and CKD operations in 2024. In fact, it has kicked off sales with the CBU launches of the Karoq and Kodiaq SUVs. These two will eventually be joined by the Octavia and the Superb – also to be sold as CBUs.
This is phase 1 and in phase 2, it will start sales of locally assembled versions of the Kushaq SUV in 2024 and the Slavia sedan in 2025. The kits for these cars will come from the group’s Pune plant in India, which has been the global production hub of both cars since their launches in 2021 and 2022, respectively. The construction of a production line at the Viet Hung Industrial Park in Quang Ninh province by Skoda’s local partner TC Group is already underway. Based on market trends, there are ambitions to ramp up production, potentially assembling as many as 27,000 vehicles annually after 2027.
Commenting on the occasion, Klaus Zellmer, Skoda Auto CEO, said, “We are excited to engage with Vietnam’s dynamic economy and a new group of customers in this fast-growing market. This is also the next step in our accelerating internationalisation strategy, strengthening our brand in the ASEAN region and intensifying the synergies between our two key markets of India and Europe. During the preparations, it has been clear that in TC Group we have an excellent partner for the production and sale of our attractive model portfolio. I look forward to starting a successful future together.”
