Hyundai’s Singapore plant opening further delayed to Q4

SINGAPORE – Hyundai Motor is now expected to open its plant in Singapore in the fourth quarter – one year after its original target date.

The opening of the

Hyundai Motor Group Innovation Centre in Jurong

was initially delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic, which shifted the timeline from end-2022 to the second quarter of 2023.

Unspecified delays have now pushed that to the fourth quarter.

The new timeline was given by Hyundai Motor’s head of sales innovation group Andy Kang on Tuesday. He said the centre in Jurong Innovation District – which has a planned annual capacity of 30,000 cars – has so far assembled around 100 Ioniq 5 electric cars for the Singapore market.

“We are looking eventually at exporting to nearby markets such as Australia and New Zealand,” said Mr Kang.

The $400 million innovation centre, which incorporates a research and development centre and a test circuit, currently

assembles the Ioniq 5

from these imported parts: a painted body from Hyundai’s manufacturing plant in Indonesia, and chassis and powertrain from its home plant in South Korea.

But things may change. Mr Kang said the company is “considering doing body pressing and painting here in the future”, and would need a new designated site for this.

The move, if it happens, will transform Singapore into a full car-manufacturing location, as opposed to an assembly site now.

Asked how economically feasible it is for Hyundai to have a full manufacturing facility here when it already has one in Indonesia, Mr Kang said: “We have many models. And our innovation centre is looking at new ways of manufacturing.

“For instance, it does not have an assembly line, but uses robots to move parts around the factory floor. We are looking at new ways of manufacturing that are different from the traditional ways.”

Mr Kang was speaking on the sidelines of an event to announce a suite of charging options for Hyundai Ioniq 5 customers.

These include a complimentary home charger by electric vehicle charging specialist Schneider Electric, 18 months of free charging at public chargers operated by home-grown Charge+, and $2,000 worth of charging rebates for OCBC Bank credit card holders.