HO CHI MINH CITY — Vietnam’s biggest listed firm Vingroup said on Friday it will produce ventilators for the Southeast Asian country’s fight against the new coronavirus.
The company has entered into a licence agreement with Medtronic for its PB560 ventilator production, the company said in an emailed statement, adding that it would also produce low-cost open-source ventilators designed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Vingroup said it would be able to produce up to 55,000 units a month at its existing automobile and smartphone factories in Vietnam, including 10,000 PB560 ventilators.
KAY NIETFELD/PICTURE ALLIANCE VIA GETTY IMAGES
Production would begin within weeks, it said, adding that the firm could also produce ventilators for foreign markets.
Vietnam has reported 237 COVID-19 cases as of late Friday, with no reported death, the Ministry of Health said.
Most of the territory’s nail salons, closed during the novel coronavirus pandemic, are owned by people originally from South Vietnam who were aligned with the United States during the Vietnam conflict.
—REUTERS
(Reporting by Khanh Vu; Editing by Alex Richardson)
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