Hyundai Motor, Kia, Hyundai Mobis forming HMG Global in U.S.

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Euisun Chung shakes hands with U.S. President Joe Biden during a meeting held in Seoul last month. [HYUNDAI MOTOR]

Hyundai Motor, Kia and Hyundai Mobis will establish a company in Delaware in an effort to expand their presence in the U.S. auto market.

The tentatively named HMG Global will allow for "quick investments in companies with new technologies, and to manage them more efficiently," Hyundai Motor said Thursday.

The investment will total 1.5 trillion won ($1.2 billion), including 747.6 billion won of new investment plus the 50 percent of Boston Dynamics owned by Hyundai Motor and Hyundai Mobis.

Hyundai Motor is investing 291.2 billion won of cash in the new company, while Kia will invest 456.4 billion won. Hyundai Motor's 30 percent of share in Boston Dynamics, worth 448 billion won, and 20 percent owned by Hyundai Mobis, worth 298.7 billion won, will be transferred to the new company.

HMG Global will get 50 percent of Boston Dynamics, becoming the largest shareholder of the robotics company. Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Euisun Chung will maintain his 20 percent share, while Hyundai Glovis owns 10 percent. The remaining 20 percent is owned by SoftBank Group.

The establishment of the company will likely be completed by August. When completed, Hyundai Motor is expected to own 49.5 percent of HMG Global, Kia 30.5 percent and Hyundai Mobis 20 percent.

The latest investment is in line with a previous announcement to invest a total of $10.5 billion in the United States made during Chung's meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden last month.

Some $5.54 billion of that will go to building an electric vehicle (EV) factory and a battery-cell plant in Georgia. The Georgia factory will be built on a 2,923-acre site in Bryan County, Georgia, around 400 kilometers (250 miles) from an existing Kia factory. It is the company's first EV-dedicated facility in the United States.

Another $5 billion will be invested through 2025 in a wide range of technologies, such as robotics, urban air mobility, autonomous driving and artificial intelligence, Chung said.

Hyundai Motor owns 33.9 percent of Kia, and Kia owns 17.3 percent of Hyundai Mobis. Hyundai Mobis has 21.4 percent of Hyundai Motor.

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]