Transport is a major driver of both climate change and air pollution in Vietnam: it accounts for 18% of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions and contributed to 99,700 pollution-related deaths in 2021. To address these challenges, the Vietnamese government has pursued electric vehicle (EV) adoption as a core policy strategy, setting targets that new urban public buses be 100 percent electric or use green energy beginning in 2025 and that 100 percent of road vehicles be electric or use green energy by 2050.
The policy brief ‘Policies To Advance Electric Vehicles in Vietnam’, published by the International Council on Clean Transportation reviews Vietnam’s existing EV policies, including fiscal incentives, supply-side regulations, and supplementary policies supporting EV infrastructure and access, alongside current EV market conditions for passenger cars, two-wheelers, and heavy-duty vehicles. The brief highlights sales volumes grew from 162,000 vehicles in 2019 to 288,000 in 2021 but have since plateaued at approximately 9 percent market share, highlighting the need for supporting policies to drive wider adoption.
The brief also recommends developing a clear, science-based definition of green energy, quick implementation of mandatory fuel consumption standards for passenger vehicles and two-wheelers, enforcing EV production and sales mandates, providing financial and non-financial incentives to stimulate EV adoption while ensuring an equitable transition and developing charging infrastructure and battery-swapping systems.
Access the policy brief here