Hyundai Motor to invest US$7.4 billion in US by 2025, with electric cars in focus

South Korea's Hyundai Motor Group said on Thursday (May 13) it planned to invest US$7.4 billion in the United States by 2025 to produce electric vehicles, enhance production and further its investment in smart mobility solutions.

The announcement before US President Joe Biden meets with South Korean President Moon Jae-in in Washington next week in talks that are expected cover North Korea, COVID-19 vaccines and semiconductor and other topics.

Biden has called for US$174 billion in new spending to boost electric vehicles and charging. US lawmakers are pushing for tens of billions of dollars in funding to shift to electric vehicles and away from gas-powered vehicles and build hundreds of thousands of charging stations.

Hyundai Motor will begin electric vehicles production at US facility in 2022, while affiliate Kia Motors also plans to build electric vehicles in the United States. Hyundai has a factory in Alabama, while Kia produces cars at its Georgia plant.

"Hyundai and Kia will monitor the market conditions and US government EV policy to finalize its plan to enhance its US production facilities and gradually expand its local EV production," Hyundai said in a statement.

The company said it would offer a suite of electric vehicles to consumers in the country starting next year as part of its plan that also includes tapping into hydrogen energy. 

Hyundai is also investing in robotics, urban air mobility and autonomous driving technology, the company said.