"Jung Eui-sun to Visit the US Later This Month... Expected to Meet White House Officials"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Yuri Choi] Chung Eui-sun, Chairman of Hyundai Motor Group, is reportedly scheduled to visit the United States this month to meet with White House officials. This visit aims to respond to the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which excludes Korean-made electric vehicles from subsidy benefits.

On the 19th, Bloomberg News cited anonymous sources reporting that Chairman Chung will attend the groundbreaking ceremony for Hyundai's electric vehicle-only plant in Georgia, USA, scheduled for the end of this month. Ali Zaidi, the White House Climate Advisor, is also expected to attend. It is unknown whether Chairman Chung will hold a separate meeting with Advisor Zaidi or discuss the electric vehicle subsidy issue.

Hyundai Motor initially planned to start construction of this plant in the first half of next year but decided to advance the groundbreaking schedule following the implementation of the IRA. Bloomberg reported, citing sources, that Hyundai once considered building the plant in Mexico, where labor costs are lower, instead of Georgia after the IRA passed, but ultimately decided to start construction early in Georgia.

Hyundai is strengthening its lobbying efforts toward the U.S. Treasury Department, which is creating guidelines related to tax credits, and is reportedly seeking ways to delay the enforcement of the IRA provision that requires final assembly to be done in North America to buy more time.

According to the IRA, only electric vehicles finally assembled in North America this year are eligible for tax credits, and additional conditions must be met in the future, such as using a certain percentage or more of battery components and critical minerals produced in the U.S. or other countries. Hyundai Motor and Kia currently produce all electric vehicles, including the Ioniq 5 and EV6, domestically, so they cannot receive electric vehicle subsidies of up to $7,500 (approximately 10.64 million KRW) per vehicle for at least several years.

Bloomberg explained that Hyundai Motor and the Korean government are intensifying lobbying efforts to ease related regulations, and that the application to Hyundai and others may vary depending on the Biden administration's interpretation of the law. It added, "The U.S. must decide how to appease important trade partners (Korea) without contradicting the purpose of the law," noting that although there are other countries excluded from the tax credit, Korea's opposition is particularly prominent.

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