Hyundai to invest $7.4B in US EV production
This also includes investment in hydrogen infrastructure and robotics.
Hyundai is going big on US EV manufacturing with a $7.4 billion investment.
Hyundai and Kia already have a decently sized manufacturing footprint here in the US, but that footprint is about to get much bigger with the investment of $7.4 billion in domestic electric vehicle production, Hyundai announced on Thursday.
The first phase of the plan tied to that investment will be the start of EV production in the US by 2022. The investment is meant to be completed by 2025 -- so we're not talking about the distant future.
Another critical component of Hyundai's manufacturing investment is its commitment to dramatically expanding America's hydrogen filling station network. Right now, the vast majority of hydrogen stations are located in California, but if hydrogen becomes more widely available, then the Nexo and other hydrogen vehicles can be sold nationwide.
Beyond the practical, near-term stuff, Hyundai is also planning on throwing cash at urban air mobility, autonomous vehicle development and robotics. The last should be interesting with Hyundai's recent purchase of creepy-robot-dog manufacturer Boston Dynamics.
Hyundai and Kia claim that they will produce a whole suite of electric vehicles in the US, though the announcement wasn't specific as to what those vehicles will be. We suspect that the Ioniq 5 and EV6 are part of that group, but that's not confirmed. In the meantime, we'll keep our fingers crossed for an electric Santa Cruz.
