Lee Min-hyung joined The Korea Times in 2014 and has worked as a journalist mainly in Korea’s finance, tech and automotive industry. He specializes in content creation, breaking news and in-depth analysis currently on transportation and mobility. You can reach him via mhlee@koreatimes.co.kr.
Hyundai Motor breaks ground for new EV plant in Ulsan
Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Chung Euisun, seventh from right, applauds with a group of attendees for the automaker's groundbreaking ceremony of its new electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing facility in the nation's southeastern city of Ulsan, Monday. They include Ulsan Mayor Kim Doo-kyum, sixth from right and Hyundai Motor President and CEO Chang Jae-hoon, sixth from left. Courtesy of Hyundai Motor
By Lee Min-hyung
Carmaker to produce 200,000 cars annually from 2026
Hyundai Motor will manufacture 200,000 electric vehicles (EV) annually with its new manufacturing facility in the southeastern city of Ulsan set to become the automaker's next production hub in an era of electrified mobility, the automaker said Monday.
According to the company, it will invest 2 trillion won ($1.51 billion) in building the 548,000-square-meter factory which will start mass-producing EVs in early 2026. This marks the first time since 1996 that the company will manufacture vehicles at a new plant in Korea.
Large electric SUVs from Hyundai’s luxury brand, Genesis, will be the first model to be manufactured at the factory.
“The Ulsan EV factory is a new beginning for Hyundai’s advance into the era of electrification for the next five decades,” Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Chung Euisun said. “We are honored to share our vision on our future here.”
“Our dream of manufacturing best vehicles in the past transformed Ulsan into an auto production complex,” he said. “Hyundai will now work together with Ulsan, so the city can drive the era of innovative and electrified mobility.”
Seen above is an aerial view of Hyundai Motor’s electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing facility to be established in the nation’s southeastern city of Ulsan. The automaker will invest 2 trillion won ($1.51 billion) to build the factory, transforming it into the firm's next production hub. The company held Monday a groundbreaking ceremony for the new factory with a capacity of 200,000 EVs annually. Courtesy of Hyundai Motor
Hyundai also plans to equip the factory with its next-generation smart logistics system for more efficient automotive parts logistics operation, the company said.
A group of Hyundai’s top executives and government officials celebrated the groundbreaking ceremony of the EV plant. They include Chung, Hyundai Motor President and CEO Chang Jae-hoon and Ulsan Mayor Kim Doo-kyum.
“The city of Ulsan will also do its best to stand in line with the global automobile industrial paradigm shift and shape the future with Hyundai,” Kim said.
The automaker will also apply its manufacturing innovation platform, developed from Hyundai Motor Group Innovation Center in Singapore (HMGICS), into the factory. Under the platform, a set of human-centric equipment will be deployed for safer and more efficient manufacturing, the company said.