Hyundai says it will spend $2.7 billion expanding the Georgia plant raided by ICE

Atlanta – Hyundai Motor Group confirmed Thursday that it was going forward with previously announced plans to extend its Georgia factory, just a few weeks after an immigration raid delayed the start of an electric vehicle battery plant on the site.

As part of a broader investment strategy, Hyundai said that it would spend $ 2.7 billion to increase production capacity on the 200,000 Ellabelll site over the next three years, to a total of 500,000 vehicles per year.

The company announced for the first time the expansion in March when the factory was opened west of Savannah, and said in August that it would take over an additional $ 5 billion in the United States. But the raid, which included arrests of more than 300 South Korean citizens, led to questions about the wisdom of the Asian nation investing in the United States.

The company said that it now planned to produce 10 models of electric gas and hybrid electric vehicles in Georgia, from the two present that the factory assembled while it increases production. Hyundai says that it is still on the right track to extend production worldwide to 5.6 million vehicles per year by 2030. The car manufacturer has promised that 60% of these vehicles will be electric or hybrid, targeting sales in South Korea, North America and Europe.

Hyundai said it planned to make more than 80% of vehicles sold in the United States at the national level by 2030, total interior content from 60% to 80%. For the first time, vehicles included a medium -sized van, a class of key vehicles on the American market. The company already makes the Santa Cruz model, a compact four-door pick-up, which it started to sell in 2021.

Hyundai CEO José Muñoz said the immigration raid will delay the opening of the battery plant at least two to three months. Spokesperson Michael Stewart said Thursday that the establishment will open in the first half of 2026.

Hyundai leaders and Georgia officials have been trying to calm the situation since the raid, which has made a diplomatic conflict between South Korea and the United States.

Republican Governor Brian Kemp told journalists on Tuesday at a ceremony marking the revolution of a Rivian car electric vehicle factory that he remains confident of Georgia’s trade benefits “would win” in terms of foreign investment. The RAID may even eventually smooth the way for South Korean employees to obtain legal authorization more easily to help build and exploit facilities in the United States, he said.

“I had good conversations with companies that do business in Georgia here, companies seeking business here,” said Kemp. “And I had good conversations with people in the White House on the visa problem.”

Brent Stubbs, the administrative director of the Ellabell site, wrote in an opinion article published Wednesday in the newspaper of Atlanta that the company is still attached to Georgia.

“This situation does not change our plans to continue to expand and locate itself in the United States,” wrote Stubbs. “Our investments in America are part of a long -term strategic plan.”

The investment of $ 2.7 billion confirmed on Thursday will go to expanding capacities in the factory and group subsidiaries, said Stewart. Hyundai and its on-site affiliates currently have 3,129 employees in Ellabell, he said.

Hyundai and his joint partner in the battery of the battery, LG Energy Solution, had previously announced 12.6 billion dollars in investments on the Georgia site, with commitments to hire at least 8,500 workers by the end of 2031. State and premises governments promised $ 2.1 billion in tax attenuation and other incitement.

The boost on the Ellabelll site is the largest plan in Hyundai to increase the production of 1.2 million vehicles per year in the world. This includes 250,000 additional vehicles in Pune, India; and 200,000 others at the Hyundai electric vehicle plant in Ulsan, South Korea. The automaker said that it would also provide parts for assembly in 250,000 additional vehicles in factories in Saudi Arabia, Vietnam and North Africa.

Hyundai underlined a previous announcement to deepen its investment in robotics and said that in 2027, it would launch prolonged electric vehicles with petrol engines to extend the range of its electric batteries to more than 600 miles (960 kilometers).