[CES2022] Munoz, Hyundai North America President: "Will Reach 50% US Eco-Friendly Vehicle Sales Ratio... Also Producing Electric Cars"

Jose Munoz, Hyundai Motor Company's Global Chief Operating Officer (COO) and President in charge of the Americas region and Head of the North America Division, spoke to reporters on the 5th (local time) at CES 2022, the world's largest electronics and IT exhibition, about electric vehicle sales targets and electric vehicle production at the U.S. plant. Photo by Hyundai Motor Company

[Las Vegas (USA) = Lee Ki-min, Asia Economy] Hyundai Motor Company, which is actively expanding sales of eco-friendly vehicles in North America, plans to produce electric vehicles in the United States in the future and aims to have 40-50% of its North American sales be eco-friendly vehicles by 2030.

On the 8th (local time), Jose Munoz, Hyundai Motor's Global Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Head of the Americas and North America Region, met with reporters at CES 2022, the world's largest electronics and IT exhibition recently concluded, and said, "Hyundai's BEV sales in the U.S. increased by more than 130% compared to the previous year, and based on these factors, we are well prepared to raise the share of eco-friendly vehicle sales in the U.S. market to 40-50% by 2030."

According to AutoData, Hyundai Motor Group sold 1,489,118 units in the U.S. last year, ranking 5th after Toyota, GM, Ford, and Stellantis. Additionally, it surpassed Honda, which was previously the second-best-selling Asian brand in the U.S., for the first time.

In particular, Hyundai and Kia's eco-friendly vehicles?including hybrids (including plug-in hybrids), hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, and battery electric vehicles?accounted for 7.4% of total sales last year, an increase of 4.2 percentage points from the previous year. Specifically, Hyundai sold 70,509 eco-friendly vehicles last year, a 258% increase from 20,953 units sold in 2020. The sales share also rose by 6.2 percentage points compared to 2020, reaching 9.5%.

To expand eco-friendly vehicle sales this year, Hyundai plans to launch its first dedicated electric vehicle, the Ioniq 5, in the U.S. and increase charging infrastructure.

Munoz stated that Ioniq 5 and Kona EV customers can charge their vehicles at a low cost for two years, adding, "We plan to continuously monitor global best practices regarding charging infrastructure expansion and further develop it." He also said, "Dealers must have charging infrastructure in place to be able to sell the Ioniq 5."

Furthermore, Munoz emphasized that Hyundai will produce electric vehicles in the U.S. Hyundai announced in May last year that it would invest $7.4 billion in the U.S. Munoz mentioned, "The investment plan includes not only future businesses such as Urban Air Mobility (UAM) and Boston Dynamics but also plans for electric vehicle production within the U.S."

When asked by reporters how he evaluates emerging electric vehicle companies like Rivian and Lucid, he replied, "We must maintain a humble and hungry attitude, learn from how competitors operate, and strive to show improved performance. At the same time, since there is a possibility of partnering with such companies in the near future, we need to continuously monitor the situation."

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