Toyota pilots EV pickup trucks in key Thai market

Reuters

Published Apr 25, 2024 05:02AM ET

Updated Apr 25, 2024 12:49PM ET

By Chayut Setboonsarng

PATTAYA, Thailand (Reuters) - Toyota launched a public transport pilot on Thursday with nine fully electric Hilux Revo pickup trucks in Thailand, a key Southeast Asian battleground for electric vehicles where Chinese players are challenging the dominance of Japanese automakers.

"The battery EV Revo have been modified into song-taews for public transportation," Toyota Motor (NYSE:TM) Thailand Executive Vice President Surapoom Udomwong said Thursday, referring to the pickup trucks that have been re-purposed for public transit.

A motorcade of Toyota electric pickup trucks drove through the Thai seaside city of Pattaya some 100 km (62 miles) east of Bangkok, where the vehicles were deployed for fixed-route transit.

The world's top-selling automaker's move in Thailand comes as Chinese EV brands make inroads into the region's main auto assembly and export hub.

Japanese carmakers, such as Toyota Motors, Honda (NYSE:HMC) Motors and Isuzu Motors have for decades dominated the Thai auto sector.

But government subsidies and tax incentives have brought a wave of investment from China, with its EV automakers committing more than $1.44 billion worth of investments in Thailand.

Chery Automobile would be the eighth Chinese brand to invest in the country, following BYD (SZ:002594), state-owned Changan Automobile and Great Wall Motors, the government said this week.

Toyota, which controls about a third of the Thai market, will deliver a dozen electric pickup trucks to Pattaya.

"This is a memorable day," said the city's mayor Poramet Ngampichet. "Pattaya is a major tourist city for Thailand and so lowering pollution is important."

Poramet said he hoped to convert Pattaya's total fleet of 700 song-taews into EVs.

Toyota has previously announced plans to mass produce the battery Hilux pickup truck by 2025, but did not specify where they would be made.