Hyundai to build car plant in Saudi Arabia

The South Korean company and the Saudi sovereign wealth fund PIF (Public Investment Fund) have signed an agreement for a joint venture that provides for the construction of a production facility for 50,000 cars per year. Both electric cars and combustion engines are to be produced there.

Construction of the plant is scheduled to begin in 2024, with production starting in 2026. Hyundai estimates the total investment at more than 500 million dollars, currently more than 472 million euros.

The joint venture is 70 per cent owned by the PIF and 30 per cent by Hyundai. Despite the minority shareholding and the manageable number of units by Hyundai standards, the project has the blessing of the highest levels in the Hyundai Motor Group: The joint venture contract was signed by the chairman of the board, Euisun Chung, at the Saudi-Korean Business Forum – high-ranking politicians from both sides were also present.

It is not yet clear from the current communication which electric models are to be manufactured in Saudi Arabia, nor is the exact location of the plant mentioned there. The localisation of production is intended to “accelerate the development of Saudi Arabia’s automotive and mobility ecosystem and attract further investment in the sector and the overall economy”, the letter only states in general terms.

Lucid Motors opened its electric car factory in Saudi Arabia at the end of September. Since then, the Lucid Air has been produced in a semi-knocked-down assembly (SKD) at the facility in King Abdullah Economic City. The vehicle kits are manufactured at Lucid’s main plant in Casa Grande, Arizona, and then shipped for final assembly.

In the case of Hyundai, there is no word on SKD or CKD manufacturing. There is only talk of “highly automated vehicle production”.

prnewswire.com