Hyundai Motor to invest in Grab
By Park Jae-hyuk
Hyundai Motor has taken its first step toward the sharing economy in the Southeast Asian market.
The nation’s top automaker said Thursday it has decided to invest in Grab, the leading ride-hailing service provider in Southeast Asia.
Dubbed the “Southeast Asian version of Uber,” Grab has grown into a company accounting for 75 percent of the region’s car-hailing service market since it was established in 2012.
It offers services in 168 cities in eight Southeast Asian nations. The number of drivers registered in the network topped 2.3 million. They provide 3.5 million daily rides, on average, proving the company’s competitiveness in the industry.
Hyundai plans to develop various services based on Grab’s business platform, expanding its presence in Southeast Asia’s mobility market.
The two companies will consider using the Hyundai Ioniq electric vehicle (EV) for car-hailing services in Singapore and other Southeast Asian countries.
Given that Southeast Asian countries have recently begun showing interest in ride-hailing services using eco-friendly vehicles, the two firms’ cooperation is expected to improve Hyundai’s brand image in the region.
“If Grab’s service combines with our eco-friendly cars, innovation will be brought into the Southeast Asian market,” said Hyundai Motor Executive Vice President Chi Young-cho, who is in charge of strategic technologies. “Seeking continuous cooperation with mobility service providers having world-class technical skills, we will lead the global sharing economy market.”
Grab CEO Anthony Tan said he is pleased with Hyundai’s cooperation, because Grab is expected to grow further, thanks to collaboration with powerful partners including Hyundai.
This is not the first time Hyundai Motor Group has joined with companies providing car-hailing, car-sharing or carpool services.
Hyundai Motor has offered its Ioniq EV to a U.S. car-sharing service provider and its hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles to Korean and German car-sharing service companies. In October last year, the world’s fifth-largest carmaker launched an Ioniq EV-based car-sharing service in Amsterdam.
Kia Motors, Hyundai Motor’s sister company, launched a car-sharing service called WiBLE last August. The service will be available in major European cities from the second half of this year.
The automotive group said it will continue to focus on the Southeast Asian market because of its high growth potential.
During the first half of last year, Hyundai created a joint venture in Vietnam with the country’s domestic carmaker, Thanh Cong, to produce the i10 and Tucson there. In December, the Korean firm sealed a deal with the Indonesian-based Artha Graha to set up a joint venture for the manufacturing and sales of commercial vehicles.