In an age where electric vehicles (EV) are slowly taking charge (no pun intended), some petroleum companies are making strides to participate in this electric wave. That includes Thailand’s PTT Group, the Kingdom’s state-owned oil company.
According to a Shenzhen filing, Volkswagen-backed Chinese battery maker, Gotion High Tech will partner with PTT via its battery division, Nuovo Plus in the production and export of battery modules and packs in Thailand. Gotion said that its Singapore unit will set up a joint venture with PTT with initial registered capital of THB 300 million (RM 38.2 million).
The joint venture – 49 per cent owned by Gotion, 51 per cent by PTT – will work on batteries for both EVs and energy storage. The Chinese company is expected to start production at a battery pack production line located in the Eastern Economic Corridor of Thailand by Q4 2023.
This cooperation will help Gotion’s global expansion and it counts Volkswagen as its largest single investor. The Anhui-based company plans to locate one-third of its production capacity outside China by 2025.
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In order to meet growing demand from EV makers and energy storage household clients in global markets, Chinese battery makers are accelerating production expansion in Europe and Southeast Asia.
Also read: Thailand is now China’s third largest EV export market
Indonesia is also spearheading and encouraging these battery makers to invest in the country but with all these developments going on, how will it affect the environment as the demand for “cleaner” EVs grows worldwide?
Also read: Are electric vehicles (EV) truly cleaner than combustion-engine cars?
Source: PTT, Thailand’s Petronas equivalent, enters joint venture with VW-backed battery maker