[ Tiramisu with TRSSEA - EP9: VinFast Electric Taxis ]

Vingroup subsidiary Green and Smart Mobility (GSM) JSC launched electric taxi services in Hanoi on April 14.

Starting with 600 VinFast cars in Hanoi, GSM plans to bring taxis to five locations in 2023, it said on Saturday. The founder, Pham Nhat Vuong, also founded VinFast parent Vingroup, which hopes to list its EV arm in the U.S.

VinFast may "benefit in the future from demand for EVs from our Vingroup affiliates" like GSM, VinFast said in a March 9 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The automaker delivered 7,400 electric cars in 2022 and has an annual production capacity of 250,000.

New taxis must be electric from 2030 in Vietnam, with a target for all cabs on the street to be EVs by 2050, according to Prime Minister Decision 876, signed on July 22.

The initial fare for the first kilometer of GreenCar service is VND20,000 (US$0.8). For the next 24 kilometers, the fare is VND14,000 (US$0.6) per kilometer for the VF 5 Plus and VND15,500 (US$0.6) per kilometer for the VF e34. From the 26th kilometer, the fare is VND12,000 ($0.5) per kilometer for VF 5 Plus and VND12,500 ($0.53) per kilometer for VF e34. Stable electricity prices make EVs a better option than gas-powered cabs, and the Hanoi Taxi Association is researching how its members can electrify their fleets.

Green Taxi SM, with a registered capital of VND3 trillion ($126.7 million), was founded March 6 by Pham Nhat Vuong, chairman of Vietnamese conglomerate Vingroup. Pham Nhat Vuong is one of few Vietnamese billionaires ranked by Forbes. Vingroup aims to spread the trend of green living and popularize the habit of using electric cars in the community.