Legal Policies

Since the establishment of VinES Energy Solution JSC (“VinES”, “the Company”) in 2021, we have been leveraging our products’ quality as well as expanding our scope of activities to become a global provider of hi-tech and wide range of energy solutions. As a pioneer in utilizing state-of-the-art technologies around the world, VinES’ mission is more than just a statement; it is a guiding principle of fairness, social responsibilities and business practices to deliver exceptional products with high-quality standards that may accelerate the worldwide transition towards clean energy. This creates a critical momentum for us to govern our suppliers by releasing a set of corporate code of conduct (hereinafter referred to as “VinES’ Supplier Code of Conduct”, “Code of Conduct” or “the Code”).

The Code of Conduct represents a minimum standard and guidelines that VinES’ suppliers (defined as all companies or individuals together with their personnel, agents or sub-contractors from which VinES cooperates or establishes a commercial relation) must follow. Provided that there are differences between our Code and applicable local or national laws, VinES expects the suppliers to implement and comply with the stricter regulations. In summary, this Code provides a means of setting benchmarks to guarantee that VinES supply chain including both recently nominated and on-going partnership is completely consistent with global standards on human rights, labor rights, environmental protection and corporate governance.

We strongly encourage our suppliers to set similar expectations with their supply chain reflected by publishing their own code of business practices and supplier code of conduct policies.

It is mandatory for all suppliers to ensure that not only themselves but also their subcontractors are fully informed of the Code and uphold the requirements as follows:

SCOPE OF OBLIGATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS

LABOR RIGHTS AND HUMAN RIGHTS

• Suppliers are committed to upholding the human rights of workers, and to treat them with dignity and respect as understood by the international community. This applies to all workers including temporary, migrant, student, contract, direct employees, and any other type of worker.
• The suppliers are not associated with human trafficking or any types of forced, bonded labor (including debt bondage) or indentured labor, involuntary or exploitative prison labor, slavery;
• All work must be voluntary, and workers shall be free to leave work at any time or terminate their employment without penalty if reasonable notice is given as per the worker’s contract. Employers, agents, and sub-agents may not hold or otherwise destroy, conceal, or confiscate identity or immigration documents, such as government-issued identification, passports, or work permits. Employers can only hold documentation if such holdings are required by law. In this case, at no time should workers be denied access to their documents;
• The hiring process must be implemented based on the principles of freedom and fairness with no harassment and unlawful discrimination based on race, color, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity or national origins, disability, pregnancy, marital status and political perspectives in employment practices such as wages, promotions, rewards, or training materials access;
• There is to be no form of corporal punishment or disciplinary policies that are in violation of human rights and international humanitarian laws. Any disciplinary mechanism in support of business practices must be clearly defined and communicated to workers;
• The suppliers commit not to use any forms of child labor (referring to any person under the greater of (i) the age of 16, (ii) the minimum legal age for completing compulsory education in a country, or (iii) under the minimum legal age for employment in a country) in any stage of manufacturing. Workers under the age of 18 (“Young worker”) are not allowed to be involved in any working environment that may jeopardize their health or safety;
• To maintain productivity, decrease turnover rate and minimize work-related injury or illness, suppliers must comply with all applicable laws related to working hours including  overtime, paid annual leave or holidays, breaks, minimum or average working wages, fair compensation, and competitive benefits;
• Recognizing the importance of collective agreements and joint actions, we encourage our suppliers to respect the rights of all workers to generate initiatives and freedom of raising their voices through labor unions or associations;

HEALTH AND SAFETY

• In addition to labor rights management systems following ISO 45001, International Labour Organization (“ILO”) Guideline and other recognized supplementary regulations governed by domestic laws, suppliers must ensure a safe and healthy working environment in order to avoid the safety hazards, thus enhancing the quality of products and services, consistency of production as well as worker retention and morale. Regular risk management procedures, incident investigation with training for workplace health and safety are to be implemented periodically to minimize potential risks and prepare preventive measures;
• Potential emergency situations and events are to be identified and assessed, and their impact minimized by implementing emergency plans and response procedures including emergency reporting, employee notification and evacuation procedures, worker training, and drills;
• Procedures and systems are to be in place to prevent, manage, track and report occupational injury and illness, including provisions to encourage worker reporting, classify and record injury and illness cases, provide necessary medical treatment, investigate cases, and implement corrective actions to eliminate their causes, and facilitate the return of workers to work;
• Worker exposure to chemical, biological, and physical agents is to be identified, evaluated, and controlled. If any potential hazards were identified, but there is no means of elimination or reduction of the hazards is not feasible, potential hazards are to be controlled through proper design, engineering, and administrative controls. Workers are to be provided with and use appropriate, well-maintained, personal protective equipment free of charge. Protective programs shall be ongoing and include educational materials about the risks associated with these hazards;
• Production and other machinery shall be evaluated for safety hazards. Physical guards, interlocks, and barriers are to be provided and properly maintained where machinery presents an injury hazard to workers;
• Workers are to be provided with ready access to clean toilet facilities, potable water and sanitary food preparation, storage, and eating facilities. Worker dormitories provided by the Supplier, or a labor agent are to be maintained to be clean and safe, and provided with appropriate emergency egress, hot water for bathing and showering, adequate lighting and heat and ventilation and reasonable personal space along with reasonable entry and exit privileges;
• Suppliers shall provide workers with appropriate workplace health and safety information and training prior to the beginning of work and regularly thereafter for all identified workplace hazards that workers are exposed to, including but not limited to mechanical, electrical, chemical, fire, physical hazards, pathogens, toxins, and other health related risks. Health and safety related information shall be clearly posted in the facility or placed in a location identifiable and accessible by workers. Workers shall be encouraged to raise any health and safety concerns without retaliation.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

• Suppliers and their agents, sub-contractors must recognize that environmental responsibilities are integral all around the world and should be placed at the heart of their industry practices. All required registration, permits and approvals must be obtained, maintained, and kept current during operational and manufacturing process. Suppliers are requested to provide VinES with all follow-up and relevant reports in a systematic manner;
• Suppliers shall identify the environmental impacts on manufacturing operations including supply chain management activities to minimize the adverse influences on community, environment with natural resources. This contributes to the continual environmental improvement by determining a series of policies related to green procurement as well as environmental protection, for example, reducing greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions, pollution, resource protection, avoiding hazardous substances, water management and other acts related to materials restrictions. The management systems shall be referred to recognized mechanisms such as ISO14001 and the Eco Management and Audit System as two useful sources of additional information;
• Suppliers commit is not only complying with all applicable environmental laws but also to continually manage energy, improve energy efficiency and materials consumption. This fosters recyclability improvement and renewable energy usage, which should be prioritized and updated timely to resolve numerous environmental concerns.
• Chemicals, waste, and other materials posing a hazard to humans, or the environment are to be identified, labeled, and managed according to applicable law.
• Suppliers shall implement a systematic approach to identify, manage, reduce, and responsibly dispose of or recycle solid waste (non-hazardous).

ETHICS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

• To align with social and environmental responsibilities, suppliers are requested to govern themselves based on the highest standards of business ethics and management system. Suppliers are to uphold the most stringent standards of integrity in all business interactions illustrated through a zero-tolerance policy abandoning all forms of bribery, corruption, extortion, embezzlement, and fraud;
• Suppliers, any of their subsidiaries or, to the knowledge of suppliers, any director, officer, agent, employee or affiliate of Suppliers is not subject to any sanctions administered or enforced by the any of U.S. government authority, the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, Her Majesty’s Treasury or other relevant sanctions authority.
• Suppliers must comply with all applicable laws and regulations concerning intellectual property rights (including transfer of technology and expertise), fair competition and business as well as personal information;
• Maintain effective privacy and cyber security practices;
• Confidentiality regarding to Suppliers’ labor, human rights compliance, environmental practices, business performance, organization structure and financial situation shall be disclosed in accordance with applicable prevailing regulations in relative industry;
• Fair business, advertising, trading, and competition regulations are to be fully committed in the jurisdictions in which suppliers perform their business model;
• Suppliers shall adopt a policy and then exercise critical due diligence on the sourcing of their whole supply chain especially the import of conflict minerals such as cobalt, tantalum, tin, tungsten, and gold (“C-3TG”) utilized during the manufacturing process. Minerals are ensured to be exploited in a way that is consistent with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (“OECD”) Guidance for Responsibility Supply Chains of Mineral from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas.

COMPLIANCE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS

• VinES requests all suppliers to commit with all applicable laws related to Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (“ESG”). In the case that VinES has any concerns about the supplier’s compliance with VinES Code, the company will initiate a dialogue to discuss the necessary audit session to clarify the circumstances. On the other hand, we expect the right to request suppliers to implement relative audit sessions with their agents as well as subcontractors as needed;
• Aligning with our Code, VinES reserves the right to request the provision of periodic evaluations and annual reports implemented by not only themselves but also third parties in order to update accurate and timely profiles of suppliers.;
• Suppliers must keep VinES informed concerning any changes or breaches of the Code due to Force Majeure or several specific situations. Therefore, both sides shall generate an implementation plan for essential compensation and improvements that will bring the supplier and/or their agents/sub-contractors back into compliance with VinES Code of Conduct;
• The Company strongly encourages all suppliers to carry out their action plans in which both VinES’ requirements and their sub-contractors’ compliance have a symbiotic relationship in conformance.  e.
• Create and maintain document tracking records to ensure regulatory compliance and conformity

• Responsible for all matters relating to the quality of batteries in electric cars (“Products”) and Battery leasing services, including but not limited to costs and losses of any product recall campaigns, damages caused to VinFast Trading or Customers due to defects or quality issues of the products.
• Responsible for repairing or replacing batteries in cases (i) These batteries are failed/ defective for the reasons coming from the manufacturer or the errors of VinES or VinFast Trading or from Distributors of VinFast Trading, or (ii) when the maximal capacity of batteries (SOH) is less than 70%.
• In case customers claim about the quality of batteries or services provided by VinFast Trading (or by the Distributors of VinFast Trading), VinES has responsibility to deal with the claims and take the final responsibility to the Customers; and, VinFast Trading will be the contact point for receiving, exchanging information and feedback on claim solving results to Customers.
• Has the rights to change battery models / types if an equal or better alternative is available for Customers.
• When customers fail to fulfill any payment obligations, including but not limited to service fees and compensation for battery damages (if any), VinES has the following rights:
  • Suspending the service as from the date of violation until the customers fulfill all payment obligations; and
  • Limiting the charging rate by technical measures.