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Hyundai chief eyes India as its next EV hub

Published: 25 Apr. 2024, 15:24 Updated: 25 Apr. 2024, 15:45

SARAH CHEA
[email protected]

Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung takes selfies with employees of Hyundai Motor's Indian subsidiary after a town hall meeting on April 23. [HYUNDAI MOTOR]

Hyundai Motor will release five EVs in India through 2030 in its latest bid for the top spot in the world's third-largest auto market.

The company will up its production capacity in the country by 1.5 million units as it eyes the Southeast Asian country for its next manufacturing hub.

The plans were announced Wednesday during Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung's second visit to India in a year, where the executive reviewed the company's mid- to long-term mobility strategies.

Chung also held meetings with overseas employees for the first time.

Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung, second from right, speaks during a town hall meeting at the company's Indian subsidiary on April 23. [HYUNDAI MOTOR]

“By around 2030, we expect to see a substantial expansion in the EV market. In anticipation of this evolution, Hyundai is focused on developing locally tailored EVs aimed at establishing us as a leading global EV brand,” Chung said during the meeting. “We also plan to proactively build charging stations at strategic locations — including dealerships — to facilitate the adoption of EVs.”

India is the world's third-largest auto market after China and the United States, with around 5 million vehicles sold last year.

Hyundai Motor India plans to begin operating a plant in Maharashtra in the second half of next year with 200,000 units of annual capacity.

Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung poses for a photo with employees of the company's Indian subsidiary after a town hall meeting on April 23. [HYUNDAI MOTOR]

Combined with Hyundai's Chennai, Tamil Nadu plant, which can produce 824,000 units per year, Hyundai Motor will have an annual production capacity of more than one million in total.

Kia India's yearly production capacity will also expand to 431,000 units within the first half of this year. It will be the biggest listing the country has ever seen.

Hyundai sold more than 600,000 cars in India last year, an all-time high in the 27 years since the Indian subsidiary was formed. It is now in the No. 2 spot behind Maruti Suzuki, according to data from the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics.

BY SARAH CHEA [[email protected]]