News

• Located on a 437.5 rais of land, SAIC Motor-CP is a result of a 30 billion baht investment and a workplace of more than 1,000 staffs— 98% of them are Thai
• To welcome the second decade of this facility, a production line for NEW MG4 ELECTRIC and a Cell-To-Pack EV battery production facility which can produce up to 50,000 packs annually are key enhancements to reaffirm MG’s status as a pathfinder for EVs with steering wheel on the right across ASEAN
• NEW ENERGY INDUSTRIAL PARK is now fully operational under the set timeframe, complete the EV ecosystem from upstream to downstream

Chonburi – 13^th May 2024 - SAIC Motor-CP Co., Ltd., and MG Sales (Thailand) Co., Ltd.—authorized manufacturer and distributor of MG cars in Thailand—would like to demonstrate their latest progress in preparation for MG’s second decade in Thailand with a goal to be a production hub for both Thailand and other countries across ASEAN. Under an investment budget of 30 billion baht, production lines at this facility can manufacture up to 100,000 units per year in all major engine technologies particularly internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEs) and vehicles compatible with alternative energy. Latest advancement in vehicle production is the introduction of a new production line for electric vehicles (EVs) with the local production version of NEW MG4 ELECTRIC as the first model. Furthermore, a new EV battery production facility is established to meet rising demands of EVs in Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries. On the development of NEW ENERGY INDUSTRIAL PARK, the entire park is now operational with plants or offices of leading partners who are jointly develop parts and components for cars of MG. All of these aforesaid developments have allocated income to locals as 98% of all staffs are Thais.

Thailand is a strategic location where MG would like to set foot on for long term business operations as MG is certain in Thailand both in terms of growth potential and demands. Centrally located in the region, Thailand also has high opportunity to be established as ASEAN’s export hub. With all these reasons, MG constructed its cutting-edge production facility at WHA Eastern Seaboard Industrial Estate 2 (WHA ESIE 2) in Chonburi. This 437.5 rais of land can be roughly divided into two zones. The first zone is a 300 rais of land plot allocated to be a Body Shop, a Paint Shop, a General Assembly Shop, as well as a warehouse to store parts of every MG model. In 2023, MG invested to develop the remaining land of 137.5 rais into NEW ENERGY INDUSTRIAL PARK to meet with increasing adoption of EVs and fulfill the entire EV ecosystem from upstream to downstream. This second and newly developed zone comprises an EV battery production facility and MG’s auto parts development zone in cooperation with leading partners. With latest round of investment, MG has become the brand that can locally produce vehicles in every major engine technology with an annual production capacity of 100,000 units.

Mr. Suroj Sangsanit, Executive Vice-President of SAIC Motor-CP Co., Ltd., explained: “Our production facility utilizes many innovations and technologies including automation systems and intelligent robotics to maximize convenience, efficiency, and precision. These innovations work in sync with our skills and experienced production team to ensure we have an upper hand in production of vehicles in various format and engine technologies. Last year, MG invested and initiated local production of EVs in accordance with our parent company—SAIC Motor Corporation—as well as the government’s investment policy. The first EV model to be produced at our Thailand production plant is NEW MG4 ELECTRIC which is a global EV model of MG with latest global delivery over 180,000 units. Versions of NEW MG4 ELECTRIC that can be produced in Thailand, with production commencement back in March 2024, are STANDARD RANGE and LONG RANGE. The first lot of local production units were also delivered to customers since April 2024. As a trailblazer in EV market, MG is not only focus on products, but we also would like to strengthen the entire EV ecosystem to accommodate increasing usage. Thus, we decided to invest in EV battery production facility—the first facility of such nature in ASEAN—under the name of HASCO-CP BATTERY SHOP. The facility has two major zones. The first zone is the battery assembly line which can run automatically with the help of countless technologies including robotic system to ensure exactness in production, AGV (Automated Guided Vehicle) technology to manage the flow of each battery upon assembly to minimize production time and maximize efficiency, Laser Welding for welding precision, as well as the assembly assurance process using CCD (Charge Coupled Device) to compare with finalized prototype before assemble each battery unit with each EV unit. The second zone is a battery quality assurance zone with 60 test procedures certified under European standards and in accordance with other battery assembly plants around the world. HASCO-CP BATTERY SHOP can assemble 50,000 Cell-To-Pack batteries annually and batteries produced here were assembled into NEW MG4 ELECTRIC.”

Mr. Suroj continued: “MG plays a crucial role in developing personnel especially in economic aspect. We have more than 1,000 staffs and 98% of them are Thai which truly benefit local hires and fulfill job demands. The main objective behind MG’s vision to develop our NEW ENERGY INDUSTRIAL PARK is to answer sharp growth of Thailand’s vast automotive industry specifically the category of EVs. To complete the gap especially in production, the industrial park also has a collaborative zone for parts development in which MG and work with trusted partners. The whole facility is now completed and operational.”

All of these endeavors, including macro-scale objectives and long-term investments, truly demonstrate MG determination in continuing its business in Thailand. MG would like to push the boundary of Thai auto industry—one of key industries that can drive economic growth—and also would like to set Thailand as a production and exportation hub of ICE cars and EVs for countries with traffic direction on the left just like Thailand, whether they are in ASEAN or other regions around the world.