Kia announces plans for full transformation as electric carmaker

Kia is making big changes in the company and this was revealed after publicly announcing its plans for the future. This week, the South Korean automaker unveiled its roadmap for full transformation as an electric carmaker.

Kia shared its plans during an online conference for the 2021 CEO Investor Day event that was held in Seoul on Feb. 8. The company labeled its new scheme for its future as “Plan S.” Aside from building EVs, Kia will also explore other ventures such as mobility solutions.

Kia is evolving and changing with the times

As per The Korea Times, the automaker’s long-term plans were personally presented by Kia Motor Corp’s chief executive officer and president Ho Sung Song. The firm actually started making electric cars already and during the conference, he promised to further enhance technology to produce high-quality EVs while also improving their sales.

“Kia is being reborn in 2021 with a new logo, new design, and new corporate name,” the CEO said. “Kia will transform into a brand that excites and inspires customers with innovative mobility experiences.”

President Song explained that the change in the company name and logo just shows Kia is fully committed to its total transformation. The firm removed “Motors” from its name as they will be moving away from combustion engines as the shift to EVs also means the use of greener energy.

"Kia Motors will pass into history,” he added. “We will greet the coming mobility era with our new name Kia, and Kia will go beyond the manufacturing and sales-driven business to solidify itself as a brand offering innovative mobility experiences to customers."

In any case, Kia is set to invest KRW29 trillion or $26 billion by the year 2025 to fulfill its “Plan S” strategy of shifting to EV cars. It is the company’s goal to introduce and sell a fleet of eco-friendly cars including EVs, Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEV) and Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEV) by 2030.

Kia launching its "CV"

Kia is a Hyundai Motor Group affiliate and it is set to release at least 11 electric car models by the year 2026. However, its first vision of electric vehicles is coming out this year and this model has been codenamed “CV.”

It is an electric crossover that will debut in March as per Motor1. Based on the report, Kia vows that this model will have its Highway Driving Assist Level 2. Starting with this CV model, Kia will be coming up with a range of EVs as part of its full transformation plans.