Hi-tech production soars amidst foreign investment
Production is booming in the tech sector as recent indications see Vietnam emerging as a major manufacturing base for Korean tech giants that manufacture TVs and other consumer electronic goods, expanding beyond the limits of mobile phone assembly.
As planned, construction on the Samsung CE Ho Chi Minh City Complex (SEHC) will kick off this year at the Saigon Hi-tech Park (SHTP) with a total investment of US$1.4 billion.
“The complex will be a cutting-edge zone of high technologies, where the latest high-end TV series will be manufactured, similar to other Samsung facilities in the northern provinces of Bac Ninh and Thai Nguyen, which produce items to serve the global market”, said Nguyen Van Dao, deputy general director of Samsung Electronics Vietnam.
In addition to its scope for production, SEHC will also embrace research and development (R&D) of hi-tech consumer electronics goods.
The first-phase production will focus on consumer electronic goods, such as smart, LCD, and LED TVs. Meanwhile, the second phase will focus on other electronic items.
Late last year, Samsung-widely regarded as the leading manufacturer of smart-phones in Vietnam- made efforts to source parts towards its prospective plant based in SHTP where dozens of businesses have eagerly queued up with hopes of becoming the tech giants’ devices suppliers.
Samsung first dropped anchor in Vietnam 20 years ago by building a TV production plant which was based in Ho Chi Minh City.
At that time, the project, valued at US$36.5 million in initial investment, was small in scale, mainly serving the domestic market.
On another occasion, Samsung had to form a joint venture with local partner TIE for the project’s deployment. In late July 2013, the company spent over VND96 billion (US$4.4 million) to buy back the stake from TIE to become a wholly foreign-owned firm.
In respect to domedtic TV production, besides Samsung and other domestic manufacturers, LG-another tech giant from Korea-currently leads this field in Vietnam.
In 2013, LG decided to pump US$1.5 billion into the northern port city of Haiphong and relocate its existing plants in Hung Yen and Hanoi to the port city.
LG’s mega-production complex was launched in late March 2015.
Around the same time the company leaders unveiled their plan to shift TV production from Thailand to Vietnam to raise capacity and save costs.
LG is producing around 600,000 TVs per year in Thailand- of this about 100,000 units are bound for export.
According to market research firm Witsview’s statistics released early this year, Samsung and LG dominated the global LCD TV market in 2014.
Samsung produces 22.8% and LG 14.9% of the total LCD TVs that came onto the global market last year.