Hyundai Motor Unveils $2.45B Investment Plan to Build EV Battery Plant in India

Hyundai Motor is putting in $2.45 billion in investment in India over the next 10 years. Using the funds, the Korean carmaker will set up 100 units of charging stations for electric vehicles and construct a battery assembly plant in Tamil Nadu.

According to Korea Joongang Daily, the Indian unit of Hyundai Motor signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the local administration of the said state in India on Thursday, May 11. Under the agreement, the automaker will build an EV battery pack assembly facility in the region, and its expected annual capacity is 178,000 assembled battery packs.

The company will also put up 100 EV charging stations which will be installed in strategic locations, mostly along the highways. It is also planning to further expand the production volume at its Chennai plant, which is also in Tamil Nadu. The aim is to boost the capacity from 750,000 to 850,000.

"As part of our long-term vision, we have finalized plans to develop and establish Tamil Nadu as a base for Hyundai’s EV manufacturing in India," Hyundai Motor India’s chief executive officer, Kim Un Soo, said in a statement. "This will help us to strengthen our portfolio and provide best-in-class features and technologies in our vehicles which will exceed our customer aspirations.”

Reuters reported that Chennai has been called the “Detroit of Asia” because it houses many manufacturing plants for automobiles. In fact, some of the major companies have facilities there as well, including Renault-Nissan, Ashok Leyland, and TVS Motor. Collectively, they are said to produce millions of vehicles every year.

At any rate, Hyundai Motor’s investment plan in the country comes just a few days after the federal government of India said it would implement higher taxes on imported vehicles to revitalize local manufacturing.

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