Hyundai explains how it plans to become one of the world’s top three EV makers by 2030

South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Company is ramping up its manufacturing capabilities because it goals to turn into one of many world’s prime three electrical automobile producers by 2030.

The automaker is investing closely in analysis and improvement, constructing new vegetation and platforms in addition to increasing EV strains and manufacturing capability.

“We are now developing two more platforms and that will enable us to have 18 models by 2030. And we are [aiming] to achieve 2 million [annual] EV sales around 2030,” Hyundai Motor Company’s CEO Jaehoon Chang informed CNBC’s Chery Kang.

Its EVs are presently developed on a sophisticated bespoke EV platform, the Hyundai Electric Global Modular Platform (E-GMP). The 2021 Ioniq 5 crossover SUV was the primary mannequin in Hyundai’s EV-focused sub-brand Ioniq to be developed on the E-GMP. Hyundai subsequently launched the Ioniq 6 sedan mannequin in 2022. An EV platform scales the manufacturing of future fashions and reduces improvement and manufacturing prices.

“It is important that we have a dedicated EV platform. Our EV platform, which is the E-GMP, is a strong enabler to ensure the EV’s performance, reliability and usability. I think this is a very strong enabler for the future as well,” mentioned Chang.

Hyundai plans to introduce autos in 2025 based mostly on its two new EV platforms, eM and eS, that are anticipated to result in extra environment friendly automobile improvement and higher value reductions.

Hyundai Motor Group, whose manufacturers embody Hyundai, Kia and Genesis, nabbed sixth place in SNE Research’s international EV gross sales rating for 2022. It delivered 510,000 EV items final yr, up 40.9% from 2021, in line with SNE Research. First place went to China’s BYD, which delivered 1.87 million items, adopted by Tesla with 1.31 million items. Germany’s Volkswagen and China’s Geely took fourth and fifth locations, respectively.

“During the last three years, our EBIT growth is 50% every year. This is mainly driven by our products, especially Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6, which are well-perceived by the customers …,” mentioned Chang.

“We can continue the momentum. We have another EV, Ioniq 7, the three-row largest SUV, in our pipeline for next year. So this is a short-term perspective of what we are doing,” mentioned Chang.

Net revenue got here in at 3.42 trillion gained ($2.56 billion), up from 1.78 trillion gained in the identical interval a yr in the past. Revenue climbed 24.7% year-on-year, from 30.3 trillion gained to 37.78 trillion gained.

Hyundai ultimately desires to penetrate China’s client market, the place the corporate’s publicity is “very much limited at this moment,” mentioned Chang.

“We have a joint venture in China. We are now on a deep dive on how we can regain the competitiveness of the China market,” mentioned Chang. China’s EV gross sales are anticipated to hit greater than 8 million items in 2023, in line with Counterpoint Research.

“I think the first step that we’re looking at is how we can optimize the operational capacity in China. And the next step should be our focus on the product portfolio, which should be attractive to local customers with the comparable software functions, as well as hardware and design features,” mentioned Chang.

Domestically, Hyundai mentioned it plans to take a position 24 trillion gained in South Korea’s EV business by 2030.

To compete with Tesla and Ford, Hyundai is constructing a $5.5-billion EV plant with South Korean battery maker SK On in Georgia to produce batteries for Hyundai and Kia EVs assembled within the U.S. The new plant is ready to start producing as much as 300,000 EVs per yr ranging from 2025.

The funding can be being pushed by the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act, which gives $7,500 tax credit if the automobile and its batteries are assembled within the U.S. Hyundai presently has no EV plant within the U.S.