At Kia, we love electrics, but we love hybrids

When a brand makes 3 million cars a year and counting every year, we listen. Which is good because on Tuesday, Kia executives spoke to their investors in Seoul. And if for them, electricity is good, oil is not bad either. It is important even in the near future, especially if it is a hybrid or a PHEV.

While others are slowing down on fuel, or giving it up, in Korea we are accelerating. Because for the bosses of this unit of the Hyundai group-Come on, this type of engine cannot decrease worldwide by 2030, quite the opposite: this market should increase. They even plan to sell 900,000 equipped models a year at that time. And so prepare accordingly.

Three new hybrids in the pipeline

How? By increasing the speed in this area and creating new hybrid models and plugins. Within 6 years, their number should increase from 6 to 9, and the manufacturer expects a three-point increase in sales thanks to this technology. Obviously, Kia’s decision makers were questioned, not about this change in direction, but about this change in their strategy.

With caution and diplomacy, they spoke of their need to remain flexible, citing the need to do so “dealing with uncertainty about the global mobility industry”. But still? When asked to explain, Kia bosses were more precise. for them, “Demand for electric vehicles could be affected by a variety of factors such as a slowdown in global economic growth, reductions in government procurement subsidies and a slowdown in the deployment of charging infrastructure.”

A survey shared by many brands. But, for all that, will the Korean group fix its thermal foundations and abandon electricity? Far from it. The brand has confirmed the following expansion of its EV range, including the EV3 expected this year, and the EV2 which should arrive a little later.

On the other hand, no information about the possible creation of a smaller and cheaper EV1 was leaked from the conference. The fact remains that with the program of 15 new models of 100% electricity, and the desire confirmed several times to offer cheap wattage cars, this type of model should be clearly seen in the product plan of the decade.

Kia, like of course the whole group, is therefore banking on two sides. But in order to effectively implement the development and production of new electrical and thermal models, you must, at least, have the means to achieve your expectations. And the band has them.

The Kia brand grew by 6.4% last year, reaching sales of 68.57 billion euros worldwide. Regarding the operating rate, it reached 11.6%, which makes it the world champion of general brands as those in front of it are luxury vehicles (Ferrari, Porsche), premium (BMW) or multi-brands (Stellantis). Keeping your eggs in one basket is a rich man’s game.