SAMCO toward green and smart transport

Mr Thanh emphasized that SAMCO has continued to effectively utilize all resources, enhancing the application of science and technology; expanding the ecosystem in the field of transportation mechanics; promoting trade services, terminals, logistics...; and strongly promoting its cultural values and human resources, thereby establishing SAMCO as a national brand in the transportation mechanics industry.

Breakthrough mindset

- Sir, as a pioneering corporation in the manufacturing of transport mechanical goods, as well as the supply of high-quality transport services, SAMCO has affirmed its key role in the development of Vietnam's automotive sector. Could you please offer any insights on this?

SAMCO, formerly known as Đô Thành Workshop, was founded in 2004 following a test operation under the holding model. After 22 years, SAMCO has grown into a major firm in Ho Chi Minh City, with 28 subsidiaries and over 5,000 workers. SAMCO's typical yearly growth rate is 8-10%.

SAMCO is a multi-industry enterprise that operates in mechanics, trade, and transportation services, with a network of car dealerships and passenger transport terminals spread throughout HCM City. The core of the enterprise is the automotive engineering sector, which produces high-quality products such as passenger cars, buses, and specialized vehicles that are widely supplied throughout the country. SAMCO has formed joint ventures with international partners to make tourist cars and trucks, including Mercedes Benz Vietnam and Isuzu Vietnam.

SAMCO currently manufactures 29-46 seat cars, sleep er cars, and 40-80 seat buses, as well as over 50 specialized vehicles for environmental protection, fire prevention and fighting, construction projects, national defense and security, cultural and artistic activities, and television. In 2023, SAMCO successfully studied and manufactured the SAMCO electric buses E30/E40/E60, which were in accordance with Vietnamese market trends.

In terms of commerce and services, SAMCO became one of the first dealerships in Vietnam for several well-known automobile manufacturers such as Mercedes-Benz, Lexus, Toyota, Mitsubishi, Isuzu, Nissan, Chevrolet, Hino, and Fuso... SAMCO's automotive service station network is distributed across HCM City and is considered contemporary and progressive, achieving technological requirements comparable to those of other nations in the region.

What stands out in SAMCO's journey is the opening of the new Eastern Bus Station (in 2020), which serves passengers coming to and from Ho Chi Minh City via Central and Northern Vietnam. SAMCO-managed bus terminals are considered culturally significant, safe, and polite.

In October 2024, SAMCO opened the SAMCO Binh Tan dealership, which sells and maintains VinFast automobiles, an electric vehicle that corresponds with environmental protection trends and encourages green transformation.

In the field of freight transportation, SAMCO provides road, river, and sea freight services both domestically and internationally. It is currently managing and operating major seaports such as Ben Nghe Port and Phu Huu Port, with a cargo handling capacity of over 4 million tonnes per year.

- Recently, the Party and the State have adopted several measures to encourage the creativity of entrepreneurs and firms. Resolution 57-NQ/TW, in particular, has shifted the thinking, awareness, and confidence of enterprises to invest in scientific research, technology, and innovation. Sir, how has SAMCO realized the vision of Resolution 57?

SAMCO has proactively and actively grasped and successfully used scientific and technological advances, as well as digital transformation, in accordance with the Politburo's Resolution 57-NQ/TW on breakthrough development of science, technology, innovation, and national digital transformation. It has proactively positioned products, developed a development strategy for the period 2025-2030 and a vision beyond 2030, developed new products and improved traditional products, and researched and applied green technology in production to master the technology of manufacturing vehicles using green, clean, and environmentally friendly electric vehicles.

Along with increased digital transformation to improve management and operation efficiency, SAMCO trains and improves engineers' and workers' capacity to access science and technology, apply digital transformation, and master new technologies to meet the demands of modern development and automation in the automotive industry.

SAMCO has established an R&D department that conducts in-depth research on green technology and conventional goods, collaborates with universities to study clean energy-powered vehicles, and investigates new materials in production...

SAMCO has steadily mastered electric vehicle production technology, particularly in the context of global green transportation development. It continues to invest in R&D to perfect the electric vehicle manufacturing process.

So far, SAMCO has developed three electric vehicle models, one of which, Sao Mai E30, has officially finished registration procedures and is ready to serve customers. The remaining two models are in the final stages of testing, bringing the SAMCO brand's high-quality electric vehicle to perfection.

Along with its electrification plan, SAMCO continues to play an important role in offering environmentally friendly transportation options with its compressed natural gas (CNG)-powered vehicles. In the near future, SAMCO is anticipated to produce buggy vehicles, garbage-collecting vehicles, and a variety of other specialized electric vehicles to satisfy the demands of certain customer segments. These products offer transportation solutions for tourism destinations, smart cities, and public services, helping to reduce noise pollution and emissions.

In particular, SAMCO has developed other green products, like electric trash trucks and electric trucks with different volume capacities, to improve urban public utility services. These vehicles can operate flexibly in residential areas with small roadways. SAMCO is rapidly growing its truck body assembly based on chassis from manufacturers in China, Japan, Russia, etc. to meet the growing demand for goods transportation, offering clients the best and most affordable transportation options. Additionally, it actively contributes to Ho Chi Minh City's waste management program by conducting research, building, and installing modern, closed garbage compaction stations that guarantee urban environmental cleanliness.

Leading and pioneering in the automotive industry

- Green transport development is a big challenge, not only for vehicles but also for the overall system. Do you have any insight on this?

The transition of automobiles from fossil fuels to renewable energy, particularly electric vehicles, is unavoidable. In addition to autonomously studying and effectively producing SAMCO electric buses, SAMCO is promoting collaboration with local and foreign partners to gain access to sophisticated technologies, particularly in the areas of batteries and energy management systems.

SAMCO is also progressively building an ecosystem of charging stations, maintenance services, and smart operating solutions at bus terminals. This orientation maintains consistency and makes it easier for consumers to utilize SAMCO vehicles and services.

SAMCO is also a pioneer in employing environmentally friendly CNG-powered buses. It also partnered with GSM Company to convert all fossil fuel and CNG-powered buses to electric vehicles, with the goal of achieving zero emissions by 2030. The two parties also work together on the distribution, maintenance, and repair of electric buses, ensuring that each excursion is safe and enjoyable. This is a significant step toward greening public transportation, contributing to the development of a clean and livable Ho Chi Minh City.

- Customers have recently come to appreciate SAMCO's products. What impressions do you think SAMCO has left on its customers?

SAMCO has 06 industrial manufacturing firms that supply the market with a variety of buses, passenger cars, and specialized vehicles. SAMCO currently manufactures 29-46 seat vehicles; sleep er cars; and 40-80 seat buses, as well as more than 50 types of specialized vehicles used in environmental fields such as garbage compactor trucks, closed garbage compaction stations, street washing and tree watering vehicles, fire trucks, and firefighting vehicles.

Customers are the ones who determine the growth of businesses. Customers have trusted and selected SAMCO's products, demonstrating the highest level of SAMCO’s quality and service.

In the future, SAMCO will endeavor to supply consumers with progressively ideal products and services that are of good quality, fair price, and prompt delivery in order to create exceptional experiences.

- Could you please provide some concrete targets for SAMCO's development plan by 2030?

In the future, SAMCO will continue to successfully employ all resources to repair passenger cars and buses, as well as produce specialized vehicles under the SAMCO brand, with the goal of achieving a 5-10% annual growth rate.

SAMCO also focuses on researching and developing products that use clean and green energy, as well as products with similar characteristics in the mechanical industry to meet the development needs of Ho Chi Minh City; researching participation in the production chain and the development of the city's railway industry while enhancing shared economic cooperation; and establishing an ecosystem among manufacturers and transportation, trade, and service enterprises under the corporation related to automotive products.

Furthermore, SAMCO focuses on solutions to increase market share, solidify a strong brand in passenger transport, shape and construct a new value chain for terminal operations, and design terminals in conjunction with participating in Ho Chi Minh City's transit-oriented development (TOD). It also maintains stability and steadily invests in better using its passenger bus terminals. It will remodel, enhance, and reorganize functional subdivisions to fulfill user requirements. It, in particular, improves passenger service quality, customer experience, and the transition to a multimodal transport model, while also encouraging the establishment of new bus routes and expanding operations in critical regions in accordance with the new administrative borders.

SAMCO is also working on the transition of electric- and green-energy-powered vehicles in accordance with the Government's carbon-reduction strategy, as well as the development of a passenger transport chain and the diversification of customer and market sectors.

At the same time, it successfully utilizes existing ports and warehouses while investing in new facilities to satisfy client demands and add value to the logistics service supply chain...

The corporation is actively preparing investment projects to develop other large-scale, modern factory systems in the Ho Chi Minh City Automotive Industrial Park in order to realize all of its breakthrough development goals as mentioned above, particularly specialized vehicles and new-generation electric vehicles. This is a strong launchpad for SAMCO to improve its production capacity and promptly react to the market's green industrial relocation.

Thank you, with respect!