Hyundai Motor, the corporate that owns and operates the Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis automobile manufacturers, will pause operations at one among its South Korean factories to focus its consideration on constructing a brand-new electrical automobile plant.
In keeping with Reuters, citing a regulatory submitting, the East Asian automaker will halt its manufacturing unit in Asan between December 31, 2023 and February 13, 2024. The Asan facility is described on the corporate’s web site as being a “state-of-the-art self-sufficient manufacturing unit” that manufactures passenger autos for export and operates an “environment-friendly photo voltaic farm on rooftops.”
Hyundai makes the Sonata and Grandeur combustion fashions right here, but additionally the Ioniq 6 electrical sedan.
The automobile group’s efforts will probably be directed towards the development of a brand new EV-only plant at its primary manufacturing complicated in Ulsan, which is on the opposite aspect of the Korean peninsula. The Ulsan facility is the world’s largest single car plant, in line with Hyundai Motor, comprising 5 unbiased vegetation that make automobiles just like the Hyundai Kona, Santa Fe, and Tucson, in addition to Genesis fashions just like the GV80 and G90, amongst others.
The EV-only manufacturing facility will grow to be the sixth plant on the Ulsan complicated and–as soon as it goes on-line in 2026–will probably be answerable for assembling the all-new Genesis GV90 flagship electrical SUV.
As reported by The Korean Automotive Weblog earlier this month, the GV90 would be the group’s first mannequin based mostly on the brand new Built-in Modular Structure (IMA) that’s designed to simplify the meeting processes and decrease prices.
71 Pictures
However when all the pieces is claimed and achieved, how come the Korean auto group is marching forward with its EV plans, whereas different names like Ford, Common Motors, and Volkswagen are citing weak demand for battery-powered automobiles and slowing down their momentum?
Ford stated that its Michigan battery plant will probably be smaller than initially deliberate, with an annual output of 20 gigawatt-hours as an alternative of the initially deliberate 35 GWh. Moreover, development at one of many two EV battery vegetation in Kentucky has been delayed.
On the identical pessimistic be aware, GM delayed the market launch of the Equinox EV crossover, in addition to the manufacturing of some Chevrolet Silverado EV and GMC Sierra EV fashions till late 2025. Volkswagen slowed manufacturing at one among its European EV factories greater than as soon as due to less-than-stellar gross sales outcomes and its CEO just lately went on document saying that the individuals’s automobile model has to tie up plenty of unfastened ends as a result of it’s now not aggressive.
Hyundai Motor, then again, outpaced all of its opponents besides Tesla by way of EV gross sales in america within the third quarter with over 28,000 battery-powered automobiles reaching prospects. By comparability, Ford offered a smidge beneath 21,000 EVs whereas the Volkswagen Group and Common Motors offered about 20,000 every.
42 Pictures
Hyundai Motor Group was additionally forward of all the opposite legacy automakers within the first three quarters of the 12 months with roughly 62,000 EVs offered within the US, forward of GM with 56,000 and the Volkswagen Group with virtually 50,000 models.
In different phrases, it shouldn’t be a shock that the Korean firm is preserving its regular tempo of enlargement within the EV house. If gross sales are good, it is sensible to pour more cash into the enterprise in order that they’ll promote much more later.
Hyundai has pledged to take a position about $5.5 billion in a brand new EV manufacturing unit within the state of Georgia, plus an extra $3 billion for analysis and improvement. That stated, the Ulsan EV plant will gobble one other $1.58 billion, bringing the entire funding to roughly $10 billion in only a few brief years.