Hyundai Motor Group has invested $7.6 billion (about 11 trillion won) in HMGMA construction. In addition, Hyundai Motor Group has invested more than $20.5 billion (about 30 trillion won) since entering the U.S. in 1986. The amount will be much higher if the partners who have entered the U.S. with Hyundai Motor Group are included.
The construction of new factories is also directly linked to job creation. The industry believes that about 8500 new jobs will be created in HMGMA alone. If you calculate the factories and auxiliary facilities of partner companies that will enter the area one after another, at least 13,000 jobs will be created.
In addition, some predict that Hyundai Steel will promise to build a plant in the U.S. through the completion ceremony. Hyundai Steel is considering building a steel mill to produce automobile steel plates by investing USD 7 billion (about KRW 10 trillion) in the southeastern part of the U.S.
In addition, HMGMA is expected to serve as a bridgehead to strengthen its position in the U.S. electric vehicle market, where Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-sun is very interested.
HMGMA will also play a big role in fostering the automobile industry in the United States. HMGMA, which is currently being tested, can produce 300,000 to 500,000 eco-friendly vehicles annually when it is in full operation.
It is a facility that can flexibly produce not only electric vehicles including Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 9, but also hybrid vehicles in some cases. When HMGMA is operated, Hyundai Motor Group's production in the U.S. will increase to 1.1 million units annually by combining the production of Hyundai Motor's Alabama and Kia's Georgia plants. This amounts to 65 percent of Hyundai Motor Group's U.S. market sales of 1.7 million units as of 2024.
Hyundai Motor Group's investment in the U.S. is expected to continue to increase. It continues to invest in robotics and artificial intelligence software in the United States, and has also established joint ventures and corporations in the United States for autonomous driving technology and urban air transport (UAM).
"The U.S. is not only the largest and most important market for Hyundai Motor Group, but also a country with the most potential partners for the group's future," a Hyundai Motor Group official said. "The management team has a strong will that the U.S. cannot miss all other markets."
"It is true that Korean companies are not being treated accordingly in the U.S. politics, even though they have contributed a lot to revitalizing the U.S. manufacturing industry," a business official said. "It is meaningful for Hyundai Motor Group to set up a place to inform the Trump administration of the activities of Korean companies."
[Kim Dongeun / Reporter Yoo Junho]
