Korean brand announces 'business transformation' plan to become a leading electric vehicle brand
Kia has committed to releasing seven all-new dedicated electric vehicles across several auto segments by 2027, in the first step of a future product plan that it says will make it one of the world’s top EV brands.
Alongside a teaser sketch previewing the seven bespoke EVs including a sports car, sedan, hatchback and several SUVs, Kia said its first dedicated EV (codenamed CV, suggesting it will be a compact vehicle) will be launched in 2021 and will introduce its new design direction.
Kia said its first dedicated EV is “destined for many regions globally” and “will offer the same competitive product quality and eye-catching design as Kia’s other vehicles, with high-performance driving and recharging characteristics”.
So far there’s no confirmation that any of Kia’s new EVs will be sold in Australia, where plans to release the Kia e-Niro and e-Soul in January this year were killed due to global EV demand.
At the time, Kia Australia said its first EV would not arrive here until at least late 2020, and since then it has confirmed its first electrified model will be launched in early 2021, in the form of a plug-in hybrid version of this month’s new Kia Sorento.
Under the ‘Plan S’ strategy announced at the start of 2020, Kia said it plans to expand its EV line-up to 11 models by 2025, when it aims for EVs to account for 20 per cent of its sales in “advanced markets” like Korea, North America and Europe.
In addition, Kia today said it expects EVs to account for a quarter (25%) of its global vehicle sales by 2029 and promised to work with independent companies to expand EV charging infrastructure worldwide.
Details of Kia’s future EV product strategy were announced today at the brand’s Hwasung plant in Korea Kia President and CEO Ho Sung Song, who said Kia will establish a leadership position in the global EV market by responding to fast-growing consumer demand for EVs.
“Kia has sold more than 100,000 BEVs worldwide since the introduction of our first mass-produced BEV in 2011, the Kia Ray EV,” said CEO Song.
“Since then, we have started to introduce a range of new BEVs for global markets and announced plans to accelerate this process in the years ahead. By refocusing our business on electrification, we are aiming for BEVs to account for 25 per cent of our total worldwide sales by 2029.”
Kia Motors says it is undergoing a company-wide transformation in order to realize ‘Plan S’, and that the 2021 ‘CV’ EV “will encapsulate the brand’s attitude towards innovation and change, presenting a new design direction that signifies Kia’s transition to an EV-focused business strategy”.
Reflecting the Volkswagen Group’s move with its dedicated EV platform, MEB, the ambitious Korean car-maker will deploy a new Electric-Global Modular Platform.
Kia said E-GMP will result in EVs with class-leading interior space across “a range of models suitable for urban centres, long-range journeys and performance driving”.
In addition to diversifying its sales model to include EV subscription services, battery leasing programs and other ‘second-life’ battery-related businesses, Kia said it aims to increase its number of dedicated EV work bays to 1200 by 2030 in Korea, and to 2000 by 2023 in other global markets.
In terms of charging infrastructure, Kia aims to offer 1500 EV chargers at its domestic dealers and service centres by 2030. In addition, its parent company Hyundai Motor Group will install 120 Ultra-Fast Chargers by 2021 in Korean urban centres and along 12 highways linking eight provinces across the country.
Worldwide, Kia is establishing more than 2400 EV chargers in Europe and around 500 in North America in partnership with its dealer networks, while strategic alliances – such as the investment in Europe’s IONITY inked last September – will further accelerate its EV charger rollout in the US and China.
Keyword: Kia promises seven new EVs by 2027