Vietnam’s electric vehicle transition up until this year was, for the most part, uneventful, with the key drivers mostly tax incentives and private sector marketing.
Then, in July, the Prime Minister of Vietnam, Pham Minh Chinh, declared, abruptly, that the centre of Hanoi would be EVs-only from July 2026.
This was done through a directive — basically the setting of an end goal with someone else expected to fill in the finer details later, in this case, the Hanoi People’s Committee.
With no clear roadmap, however, and obvious doubts about whether or not this might even be possible, confusion reigned.
This resulted in used petrol-powered motorbike retailers in Hanoi starting to report a downturn in sales within just days, and frequent travellers within the demarcated EV-only zone filled with angst over how they might afford to make the switch from petrol to electric.
At the same time, down south, the question on every biker’s lips was if it was happening in Hanoi, would it happen in Ho Chi Minh City, too?
HCMC authorities were quick to respond, announcing the Department of Construction would take the lead with a roadmap to be forthcoming (Read: HCMC was in control of its own EV transition, no directive needed).
This seemed to work, too, with the metropolis largely left to its own devices.
In Hanoi, however, debate was heating up, with the official line that the move was necessary in order to reduce out-of-control pollution, struggling to gain traction.
This was largely the result of a well-cited 2022 World Bank report finding that only a third of Hanoi’s air pollution was actually created in the city, with the rest drifting in from elsewhere.
Of that third, it also found that just 25 percent came from transport, the equivalent to about 14 percent of all air pollution in the city.
Furthermore, no one was quite sure why making the centre of the city EVs-only was the first port of call and not improving public transport options and connectivity.
This all then fed into an emerging narrative framing the policy as a ploy to give EV sales a jump start to support struggling local EV maker VinFast, a subsidiary of Vietnam’s biggest conglomerate, by market capitalisation, Vingroup.
Irked by the suggestion, Vingroup responded by announcing in a press release that it was taking legal action against influencers who were perpetuating these allegations (though, notably, failed to clearly deny them).
Of course, legal action could stop people from repeating the claim, but it couldn’t stop them from thinking it.
That aside, adding to the melee, public safety concerns had been top of mind for many Hanoians after a fire in Hanoi in 2024, which killed 56 people, was widely reported to have been caused by an electric bike on charge.
Notably, these reports were redacted/corrected a day later to reflect that it was actually a gas-powered bike, though by then the idea had already spread. Moreover, most mastheads made the change without explanation, serving to confuse rather than reassure.
Those concerns were then further boosted just last month when the HCMC police warned against charging bikes overnight, reporting that 41 fires had started as a result of EVs on charge in the 12 months to October 2025.
On that note, two apartment blocks in Hanoi made national news last week when they announced management was implementing a ban on charging EVs in their basements.
At least one of these bans was later rejected by its local ward authorities, with building management advised to increase security patrols and retrofit the area to be safe for charging.
On that note, there has been a push for national regulations on parking and charging infrastructure, with HCMC officials saying gaps in current regulations are confusing property owners. The more pressing issue, however, is really whether older buildings can technically be retrofitted, how much that might cost, and who might have to pay.
As for the broader business community, the abrupt nature of the policy move has generally not been well received.
Bike maker Honda for example, has said that there is a good chance it will cost jobs and suggested planning for a transition over a few years, not just one. Likewise, ride-hailing app Grab and local electric bike maker Selex both have said the timeline is too short.
There have, however, been some supporters. Vinfast, for example, has embraced the new policy, offering trade-in deals and free charging for new purchases. As has home grown ride-hailing app Be (notably with whom VinFast entered into a commercial agreement in 2023).
So where does that leave it?
On the table in Hanoi is a plan, somewhat watered down, that would see the city centre as an EV-only zone at certain times of the day, though details are still vague.
Down south, HCMC is looking at a ban on commercial vehicles below Euro 4 standards and service motorbikes below Euro 2 standards in the city centre from next year, though it’s not really clear how this might be implemented or policed, either.
All of that is to say, four months in and there a lot of contradictory and conflicting dynamics at play, a very tight timeline in place, and a public that is confused and concerned about the cost and the risk to themselves and their families, that doesn’t seem to recognise the benefits to the air that they breathe, so much as the hardship they are set to endure, the spoils of which they see favouring an elite few.
What happens next is anyone’s guess; however, it is clear that not everyone is on board and that getting them across the line is going to be a very challenging task.