Hyundai Motor said on Tuesday it would build a dedicated electric vehicle (EV) factory in South Korea that will become its first automobile plant to open in the country in almost three decades.
Production is due to begin by 2025, the company's union said
in a statement, relaying a pledge that the company had made in wage
negotiations. Hyundai Motor gave no further details in its statement.
In May, Hyundai Motor Group, which houses Hyundai Motor and
Kia, said it would invest KRW 63 trillion in South Korea through to 2025.
Hyundai Motor's unionised workers in South Korea voted this
month for a possible strike for the first time in four years over demands for
higher wages. They were also angry at management prioritising investment
outside the country.
Hyundai Motor, South Korea's largest automaker, last opened
an automobile factory in South Korea in 1996. But it said in May it would
invest $5.5 billion to build full EV and battery manufacturing facilities in
Georgia.
The EV facility in Georgia is scheduled to break ground in
early 2023 and begin commercial production in the first half of 2025, according
to Hyundai Motor.
"Sales of internal-combustion-engine vehicles are
scheduled to be banned in certain markets so the new EV factory is vital to
Hyundai Motor's survival," said Chang Moon-su, an analyst at Hyundai Motor
Securities, a subsidiary of the automaker.
Hyundai Motor shares were flat in midday trade, while benchmark KOSPI was down 1.1 percent. © Reuters