Sources: Hyundai to set up $7 billion plant in Georgia during Biden visit

ATLANTA (AP) — South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Group is expected to announce next week that it is building a massive electric vehicle plant near Savannah, Georgia, according to a U.S. official familiar with the planned announcement.

Hyundai is finalizing plans for the new plant as President Joe Biden is due to visit South Korea next week as part of his first visit to Asia under his administration.

The White House and Hyundai have been in talks about the plant that is expected to create thousands of new jobs in Georgia, and the official announcement is expected to come during Biden’s May 20-21 visit to Seoul, according to the official who is not was not authorized to comment and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The official, however, pointed out that the details of the official announcement are still being worked out.

The plant could grow to 8,500 employees and would be built on a 2,200-acre (890-hectare) site owned by state and local governments near the hamlet of Ellabell, Georgia, two people familiar with the Georgia talks said. with Hyundai.

It’s about 25 miles (40 kilometers) inland from Savannah. The second person said Hyundai would invest more than $7 billion and could also build gasoline-powered cars at the site, with an announcement in Georgia scheduled for May 20. The people spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the confidential talks.

This would be the second massive electric vehicle plant announced in Georgia in less than a year. Rivian Automotive announced in December that it would build a $5 billion, 7,500-job electric truck plant about 70 miles east of Atlanta.

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Madhani reported from Washington. Associated Press automotive writer Tom Krisher contributed from Detroit and writer Russ Bynum contributed from Savannah, Georgia.

Jeff Amy and Aamer Madhani, Associated Press