Kia Motors President Song Ho-sung Takes On-Site Management Role, "Diversifying Domestic and International Mobility Strategies"

President Song Ho-sung of Kia Motors Visits Sohari Plant on the 13th
Inspects New Carnival Production Line... Presents Mobility Strategy Direction
Expands Domestic Subscription Service Scale Including Carnival
Increases Collaboration with Various Overseas Mobility Service Companies

[Asia Economy Reporter Suyeon Woo] On the 13th, Song Hoseong, President of Kia Motors, visited the Sohari Plant to inspect the production line of the new Carnival and presented Kia's global mobility strategy direction. Domestically, the company plans to expand vehicle subscription services, and overseas, it will actively respond to the increasingly competitive mobility market by increasing collaboration with various mobility companies.

During his visit to the Sohari Plant in Gwangmyeong-si, Gyeonggi-do, President Song emphasized, "Based on Kia's long-standing production experience and tradition, we must do our best to provide customized vehicles and differentiated mobility services that can meet the diverse needs of global customers."

Earlier this year, Kia announced its mid- to long-term strategy 'Plan S,' which boldly shifts to two future businesses: electric vehicles and mobility solutions. The plan includes diversifying mobility service businesses targeting not only domestic but also major global cities.

First, domestically, Kia will significantly expand the scale of its vehicle subscription service. The vehicle subscription service 'KIA FLEX,' launched last year, will add new models including the 4th generation Carnival. The minivan 4th generation Carnival, leveraging its vehicle characteristics, can be utilized in various mobility services such as car-hailing, car-sharing, and subscription services. Kia plans to increase the operation scale of KIA FLEX from the current 135 vehicles to about 200 vehicles and will also include upcoming electric vehicles in the subscription service EV lineup.

Song Hoseong, President of Kia Motors, visited the Sohari plant on the 13th to personally test drive the new Carnival and inspect its interior. Photo by Kia Motors

Additionally, Kia will provide various services such as parking and car washing to enhance customer convenience. KIA FLEX is a contactless service that handles all processes from vehicle inquiry, reservation, payment, to return through a smartphone app, allowing customers to freely use and return vehicles on a monthly basis. Since its launch in June last year, the service has attracted about 320 users and approximately 2,300 registered members.

Meanwhile, in the European market, Kia plans to strengthen cooperation with global mobility operators to expand locally optimized mobility services. Based on the car-sharing service 'WiBLE' platform, established in 2018 as a joint venture with Repsol, Spain's largest energy company, Kia plans to offer various mobility services in a multimodal form (services optimized for convenience by combining various transportation modes).

WiBLE is a free-floating mobility service business that allows users to rent and return vehicles freely within a specific area. Currently, 500 Niro Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs) are in operation. To date, WiBLE has become Spain's top car-sharing business with 170,000 members, an average of 3,000 daily uses, and 300,000 downloads.

In Italy and Russia, Kia plans to launch a new 'dealer-led' mobility service this year. This service allows customers to rent Kia vehicles managed by dealers for periods ranging from one day to one year, potentially leading to vehicle purchases. The service will expand to other overseas regions beyond Europe next year.

Song Hoseong, President of Kia Motors, visited the Sohari plant on the 13th to personally test drive the new Carnival and inspect its interior. Photo by Kia Motors

In North America, Kia is actively promoting the transition to an electric vehicle (EV) business system by strengthening cooperation with major mobility service providers. Last year, Kia supplied 200 Niro EVs to the U.S. car-hailing company Lyft, and this year, it supplied 44 Niro Hybrids to 'Motion Lab,' Hyundai Motor Group's mobility service corporation.

Motion Lab, established last year by Hyundai Motor Group in Los Angeles to conduct pilot projects for various mobility services such as car-sharing, robo-taxis, and shuttle sharing, currently provides free-floating car-sharing services mainly in the downtown LA area. Kia plans to utilize vehicle operation data collected from cars supplied to Lyft and Motion Lab to develop vehicles specialized for future mobility services.

In emerging markets, Kia is also actively preparing for changes in the mobility market. Through investments and partnerships, Kia plans to study locally optimized vehicles and service packages by utilizing vehicles and operation data supplied to India's largest ride-hailing company Ola, car-sharing company Revv, and Southeast Asia's ride-hailing company Grab.

President Song emphasized, "Based on business strategies tailored to regional mobility characteristics, we will actively pursue open innovation with various partner companies and realize the 'Plan S' strategy aimed at proactive transition to an electric vehicle business system and providing customized mobility solutions."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.