Kia To Set Up $758 Million Factory For Electric Vans, Delivery Vehicles

Kia held a momentous ceremony for its new plant dedicated to the production of battery-electric utility vehicles, including vans and other types of delivery vehicles. The event, attended by over 200 people, including government officials and executives from Hyundai Motor Group, took place at Kia's Hwaseong plant, located in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea.

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The President and CEO of Kia, Ho Sung Song, stated that the Hyundai Motor Group, plans to invest KRW 24 trillion (Rs 1.4 lakh crore) in the domestic electric vehicle industry and significantly expand annual EV production in Korea to 1.51 million units and global volume to 3.64 million units by 2030. The group aims to make South Korea one of the top three players in the global EV market by enhancing the competitiveness of the entire electric vehicle ecosystem, including research and development, production, and infrastructure.

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"Our goal is to lead the way in driving change and innovation in the new global automotive industry," said Song, at the announcement.

Kia will invest approximately USD 758 million (Rs 6,138 crores) to secure 99,000 acres of land for the new electric UV plant. The company plans to start mass production in the second half of 2025, with an annual production capacity of 150,000 units in the first full year, and potential for expansion in line with future market conditions.

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Kia plans to show its first model in the company's dedicated electric van line-up, the SW (project name), in 2025. The model will be a mid-sized vehicle and will be based on the "eS" platform, a dedicated skateboard platform for battery electric utility vehicles, enabling various types of vehicle bodies to be flexibly combined.

After launching the mid-sized SW van, Kia plans to expand its product line-up to large-sized models that can be used for logistics, fresh food delivery, multi-seat shuttles, and mobile offices and stores as well as small-sized vans and mid-sized robo-taxis applied with autonomous driving technology.

The new PBV plant will be built as an eco-friendly facility that applies future innovative manufacturing technologies while minimising carbon emissions. It will also seek efficiency and intelligence with Hyundai Motor and Kia's smart factory brand 'E-Forest technologies.' One of the innovative manufacturing processes to be implemented at the new plant is known as the 'cellular (or cell) method,' which allows vehicle production based on diverse buyer demands.