Kia's New Era Towards Electrification Begins, Gwangmyeong EVO Factory Starts Operation

Kia EVO factory Gwangmyeong. (Photo: Kia)

JAKARTA - Kia Corporation officially announced the opening of the Kia Gwangmyeong EVO factory as the first electric vehicle production facility.

The factory is located in Kia Autoland Gwangmyeong, this new facility in South Korea has an annual production capacity of 150,000 units and has started producing Kia EV3 in the first half of this year, which will be followed by EV4 in the first half of 2025.

Referring to the term 'Evolution', the factory shows how Kia will continue to evolve and move forward along with its goal of becoming a leader of future mobility.

Executive Vice President and Head of Domestic Production Division Kia un Young Choi, said the completion of the factory confirmed Kia's first step as the leader of electric vehicles after the re-launch of the company brand in 2021.

"With the aim of providing a sustainable mobility solution, we will lead innovation in the EV market and fulfill our responsibility in supporting a sustainable future," he said, in an official statement received, Friday, October 18.

On the same occasion, Seung Won Park, Mayor of Gwangmyeong, revealed that the completion of the Kia Gwangmyeong EVO factory will help Gwangmyeong City to establish itself as the center of the electric vehicle industry in Korea.

"Through this, we will try to promote sustainable local economic development and create more jobs," said Seung Won Park.

The Kia Gwangmyeong EVO factory stands with the spirit of 'chasing maximum changes through a minimal expansion' through considerations of locations in the city center and other environmental factors, such as green space protection.

In addition, this factory was built by considering full-scale electrification conversions with a focus on environmentally friendly and friendly processes for workers. There are several areas presented, such as Body Shop is now a high-tech logistics factory thanks to the introduction of automated guided forklifts and environmentally friendly innovations at Paint Shop by implementing the 3C1B water-based method, instead of the previous oil-based 3C2B method.

New equipment has also been introduced to improve welfare and reduce the workload of factory employees, including machines that can automatically install high-voltage batteries, wheels, and tires on vehicles.

After the inauguration ceremony of the Gwangmyeong EVO factory, Kia will increase production of electric cars. Mass production of EV3, the Kia compact electric SUV, began in the first half of this year. EV3 is Kia's third special EV model after Kia EV6, an electric crossover SUV launched in 2021, and the Kia EV9 flagship electric SUV launched in 2023.

Kia plans to take advantage of the Gwangmyeong EVO plant as the main production base for EV models, including EV3 and EV4, with an annual production capacity of 150,000 units.