Details In on Hyundai’s $7-billion, 8500-Employee EV Plant in Georgia

• Earlier, Hyundai confirmed to Autoweek it would be building a dedicated EV plant in the US but would not corroborate reports it would be in Georgia.

• Next week President Biden is expected to formally announce the automaker's plans will indeed be to build an electric-vehicle assembly plant outside of Savannah, Georgia.

• The Hyundai plant will join a recently announced Rivian EV factory in the state, which itself is scheduled to be fully operational by 2028.

President Biden will announce in Seoul next week that Hyundai Motor Group will build a new, $7-billion electric vehicle assembly plant in Ellabell, Georgia, about 25 miles inland from Savannah, the Associated Press reports, citing “sources.” The plant is to employ 8500 workers when operating at full capacity, and could build some internal combustion-powered Hyundai models alongside the EVs, one source told the AP.

Biden visits South Korea the week of May 16 as part of his first Asia trip as president.

The Hyundai deal comes hot on the heels of final approval of Georgia’s plans to offer EV truck maker Rivian $1.5 billion in incentives for its $5-billion assembly plant near Rutledge, about 45 miles east of Atlanta, that promises 7500 employees at an average of $56,000 in salaries/wages per year by 2028. Capacity of the Rivian plant will be 400,000 units per year.

Until the new Hyundai deal becomes official, the Rivian plant is set to be Georgia’s biggest private venture. While Georgia has numerous automotive supplier plants including a new SK (South Korea) Innovation battery plant about 50 miles north of the Rivian site, the only auto assembly plant in the state currently is Kia’s 5500-employee plant in West Point, near the Alabama border. Kia received about $410 million in state incentives in 2009.

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