Hyundai Elevator sells plant, heads to Chungju

Hyundai Elevator, the largest elevator manufacturer in Korea, is selling its main facilities in Icheon, Gyeonggi, to SK Hynix and will relocate to Chungju, North Chungcheong.

In a regulatory filing Thursday, Hyundai Elevator said it paid 30.5 billion won ($26.1 million) to acquire an area for its new headquarters and production plant in Chungju. It said the move is aimed at increasing its production capacity, raising efficiency and building smarter facilities for workers.

Hyundai Group’s lift unit is selling its current base, which includes its main factory, dormitories and headquarters in Icheon to SK Hynix for 205 billion won. The chipmaker has not yet decided how it is going to use the Icheon area.

Chungju said in a statement that Hyundai Elevator considered moving to the city as it faced difficulty expanding and renovating its facilities due to government regulations. The city vowed to provide necessary financial and administrative support for the elevator company to settle in and start business in the area.

Hyundai Elevator is a lift affiliate and holding company of Hyundai Group.

“With the 220,000 citizens of Chungju, we welcome Hyundai Elevator’s decision to move to Chungju,” said Cho Gil-hyung, mayor of the city, in a statement. “We will provide all the administrative support needed to help the company conduct its business in our area.”

The city hopes Hyundai Elevator will bring new employment and contribute to the regional economy. Hyundai Elevator, founded in 1984, has 2,200 workers and 300 subcontractors, and averages around 2 trillion won in annual sales. The company has installed the most elevators in Korea for the past 12 years.

The elevator company recently signed a strategic partnership with Hoa Binh Construction Group, Vietnam’s second-largest construction company, and acquired 25 million shares of the Vietnamese group worth 28 billion won.

The construction company will adopt all of the Korean elevator company’s products for future design, construction and architectural participation projects.

BY KO JUN-TAE [ko.juntae@joongang.co.kr]