Thailand's EV Investment Surpasses 137 Billion Baht

The Board of Investment is positioning Thailand as a comprehensive manufacturing base for all electric vehicle technologies, with recent investment approvals breaking through 137 billion baht to establish Thailand as a regional production and export center. Nrut Terdsteesakdi, Secretary-General of the Board of Investment and Secretary of the National Electric Vehicle Policy Board, opened the International Electric Vehicle Technology Conference and Exhibition (iEVTech) 2026, organized by the Thai Electric Vehicle Association (EVAT) under the theme "Driving Thailand's EV Future: Powering a Competitive & Connected Supply Chain."

The iEVTech conference is an international EV industry forum attracting numerous international organizations including the Asian Electric Vehicle Federation, China EV100, and EV associations from Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, the Philippines, Laos, China, and Hong Kong, along with leading companies in EV supply chains from various countries. This reflects Thailand's role as a center for ASEAN electric vehicle cooperation, linking regional policies, standards, and supply chains.

Terdsteesakdi outlined Thailand's automotive industry development strategy and achievements in establishing champion production bases at different periods, from one-ton pickup trucks to internal combustion engine vehicles, to globally standard eco cars, and now the transition to the era of "clean energy vehicles and smart vehicles." This particularly includes promoting production of various EV types (xEV) such as mild hybrid (MHEV), hybrid (HEV), plug-in hybrid (PHEV), battery electric vehicles (BEV), and other future technologies.

Investment promotion measures have been updated to cover all vehicle technologies, enabling all manufacturers to invest and grow together in Thailand. Simultaneously, efforts focus on building a comprehensive future automotive supply chain connecting manufacturers, component producers, batteries, smart systems, software, research and development centers, and testing facilities to elevate Thai entrepreneurs' roles in global supply chains and ensure sustainable industry growth.

These efforts have maintained Thailand's position as the region's strongest automotive production base and among the world's top rankings. For electric vehicles, Thai consumers have responded positively—in 2025, all EV types comprise over 44% of new vehicle registrations, compared to just 3% five years ago. HEV vehicles lead at 21.8%, followed by BEV at 19.6% and PHEV at 2.9%, showing all technologies can advance together, with hybrids serving as a transitional technology to full electrification.

As of May 2025, there are 198 approved EV industry investment promotion projects worth over 137 billion baht combined, covering electric vehicle production, batteries, critical components, charging stations, and battery swapping facilities. This includes BEV manufacturer investments of 39.5 billion baht (18 projects), HEV vehicles 29.9 billion baht (7 projects), PHEV 9.429 billion baht (7 projects), and other EV types like electric buses and electric motorcycles 3.1 billion baht (18 projects). Additionally, battery and energy storage system (Battery & ESS) investments total 33.5 billion baht (57 projects), with component manufacturer investments also contributing significantly.