Peter Johnson, writing for Electrek;
Kia held an opening ceremony for its first EV-only plant, “EVO,” as it looks to establish itself as a leading electric vehicle maker. Kia’s new low-cost EV3 and EV4 models are the first electric cars scheduled for mass production. The new facility will kick off a new era for Kia, with the capacity to build 150,000 EVs annually.
You can find the official statement from Kia, (Korean) here.
You can read the translated version below;
Kia holds completion ceremony for ‘Gwangmyeong EVO Plant’
2024-09-27Kia holds completion ceremony for ‘Gwangmyeong EVO Plant’
Kia is building the ‘Gwangmyeong EVO Plant (hereinafter referred to as EVO Plant),’ the first electric vehicle-only plant of the Hyundai Motor Group, and is embarking on full-scale mass production of electric vehicles.On the 27th, Kia held the EVO Plant completion ceremony at AutoLand Gwangmyeong in Soha-dong, Gwangmyeong-si, Gyeonggi-do.
About 150 people attended the event, including Choi Jun-young, CEO of Kia, Park Seung-won, Mayor of Gwangmyeong City, Lim O-kyung, Kim Nam-hee, members of the National Assembly for Gwangmyeong City, and Lee Ji-seok, Chairman of the Gwangmyeong City Council.
Kia plans to use the Gwangmyeong EVO Plant as a key base for producing popular electric vehicle models, starting with the compact SUV electric vehicle EV3 in the first half of this year and the EV4 in the first half of 2025.
Choi Joon-young, CEO of Kia Motors, said, “The completion of the Kia Gwangmyeong EVO Plant marks the first step for Kia to become a leading electric vehicle brand, which we have dreamed of since our brand relaunch.” He added, “Under our mission to provide sustainable mobility solutions, we will lead innovation in the electric vehicle market and fulfill our responsibility for a sustainable future.”
Mayor Park Seung-won of Gwangmyeong City also said in his congratulatory remarks, “The Gwangmyeong EVO Plant is an example of a leading company like Kia developing innovative technologies for a sustainable future and growing together with the local community.” He added, “Gwangmyeong City will continue to do its best to develop the eco-friendly automobile industry together with Kia and to contribute to revitalizing the local economy and creating jobs.”
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■ Hyundai Motor Group’s first electric vehicle-only factory… A forward base for popularizing EVs
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The Kia Gwangmyeong EVO Plant is an electric vehicle-only factory with a total investment of KRW 401.6 billion on a site of approximately 60,000 m2 (approximately 18,000 pyeong), and will be used as a forward base for the production of Kia’s popular electric vehicle models.
The name Gwangmyeong EVO Plant is a combination of the word ‘Evolution’, meaning ‘evolution’, and the word ‘Plant’, meaning ‘factory’. It contains the will to be reborn as a brand that pursues evolution and innovation and leads the new mobility environment.
Kia transformed its Gwangmyeong Plant 2, which was completed in 1987 and produced the national compact car Pride as well as export models Stonic and Rio, into the Gwangmyeong EVO Plant through construction that took about a year starting in June of last year.
The Gwangmyeong EVO Plant is the Hyundai Motor Group’s first electric vehicle-only plant, and is significant in that it was reborn as a next-generation production base through a comprehensive reconstruction of an existing, aging plant.
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The Kia Gwangmyeong EVO Plant is characterized by its application of the theme of ‘pursuing maximum change through minimum expansion’, taking into account its geographical characteristics of being located in the city center and environmental factors such as the green belt.
In addition, this is a workplace that has attempted a full-scale electrification conversion centered on the keywords ‘eco-friendly’ and ‘worker-friendly’, and has given new characteristics to each process.
First, the body process was transformed into a logistics-advanced factory by introducing unmanned AGV forklifts, and the painting process was transformed into an eco-friendly factory by applying the water-based 3C1B method instead of the existing oil-based 3C2B method. The interior process was also designed with the worker’s environment as a top priority, with high-voltage batteries and automatic wheel & tire installation.
A Kia official explained, “Various innovative technologies have been introduced to the Gwangmyeong EVO Plant to secure competitiveness in electric vehicle manufacturing.”
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■ Full-scale electrification transition begins… “We will show you a new history of electric vehicles”
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The Gwangmyeong EVO Plant began mass production of the EV3, a compact electric SUV, last June, and plans to accelerate full-scale electric vehicle production after the completion ceremony.
The EV3 is Kia’s third dedicated electric vehicle in the domestic market, following the EV6, Kia’s first E-GMP-based electric vehicle in 2021, and the EV9, a large electrified flagship SUV in 2023.
The Gwangmyeong EVO Plant plans to produce the EV4, the Kia brand’s only compact electric sedan model, in the first half of next year, following the EV3.
Kia plans to use the Gwangmyeong EVO Plant as a key electric vehicle production base with an annual production capacity of 150,000 units through the production of EV3 and EV4, and solidify its position as a leading electric vehicle brand.
A Kia official said, “EV3 and EV4 will play a very important role in popularizing electric vehicles,” and “We will show you a new history of electric vehicles at the Gwangmyeong EVO Plant.”
