Kia Corporation said it would begin construction of an electric vehicle (EV) plant in Hwaseong, South Korea, in March, after the automaker reluctantly reached an agreement with labour unions over employment levels and the scope of the plant.
The company plans to convert an existing building within its Autoland Hwaseong complex with completion scheduled for the end of 2024 and mass production of battery powered, purpose built vehicles (PBVs) to start in July 2025.
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The plant will have an initial capacity of 100,000 electric PBVs per year, designed to be used as local robotaxis, unmanned cargo carriers, movable offices or other purposes. Capacity would be increased to 200,000 units per year when required.
According to local reports, Kia agreed with unions to employ 759 workers at the plant, 31% more than it had originally planned. As EVs require far fewer workers and components than conventional vehicles, the automaker also agreed to install electric powertrain production facilities at the plant due to the staffing levels even though it had originally planned to source these parts from a larger centralised Hyundai Motor Group (HMG) facility.
Labour unions in South Korea are adamant employment levels in the automotive industry will not drop as part of its transition to zero emission vehicles which are estimated to require 37% far fewer parts and far fewer man hours to produce.
With Hyundai Motor also scheduled to begin negotiations with unions this year over staffing levels at a planned domestic EV plant, a local automotive executive described the situation as a “hot potato for the industry”, adding “local automakers may have to compete on price and profitability while maintaining a larger workforce than those of other global EV makers”.
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