Hyundai, Kia to Ramp Up EV Output in Europe & US

To better handle the more stringent pollution objective and high tariffs on imported automobiles, South Korea's top two automakers, Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp., are anticipated to increase the production of electric vehicles in Europe and the US.

Hyundai Motor has started the process of producing electric vehicles (EVs) at its Turkiye facility, which presently solely produces cars with combustion engines, including the i20, according to sources in the auto industry.?After apparently stopping local manufacture of the i10, its strategic model for the European auto market, Korea's largest automaker is anticipated to begin producing battery-powered automobiles alongside gasoline-powered vehicles from the factory next year.

The company will export all of its green vehicles to nearby European nations, where demand for clean automobiles is expected to rise as a result of the European Union's strict environmental production requirements that require all new cars and vans to be emission-free starting in 2035. The region's EV demand is also showing signs of rebounding from a prolonged pause in EV adoption.

Due in part to renewed government subsidies for EVs in some nations, notably Germany, EV sales in Europe increased 37% in January compared to the same month in the previous year. Hyundai Motor is reportedly considering producing small battery electric cars at the Turkiye facility to satisfy the renewed demand for clean cars. Kia, its sibling, has vowed to sell half of its new EV4 cars in Europe this year, making it more aggressive in EV production there.

In reaction to the high import taxes imposed by the Donald Trump administration, the Korean automaker is also thinking about increasing EV production in the US.

?At Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA), the company's first specialized mass-production EV plant, which opened late last year in Savannah, Georgia, Hyundai Motor has begun producing the IONIQ5. According to reports, the Korean auto giant is considering increasing yearly EV production at HMGMA from 300,000 to 500,000 vehicles to offset the US government's projected 25% tariff on cars built in Korea.