Hyundai Motor Group aims to break into top-three EV club soon. Here's how

Hyundai Motor Group is making some big-ticket moves in its bid to play the electric vehicle (EV) game more aggressively and wants to be the top-three player in the world by the end of the ongoing decade. The group - Hyundai, Kia and Genesis - is looking at ramping up investments to bolster production in order to cater to the gradually rising demand.

Hyundai has repeatedly underlined its e-GMP (Electric Global Modular) platform for electric vehicles which serves as the base for models like Ioniq 5 and EV6. It is an electric-only dedicated platform which will give birth to future EV models as well. But introducing new models and expanding the portfolio alone won't work as demand has to be matched by supply. As such, Hyundai Motor Group plans an investment thrust of $18.2 billion till 2030.

Watch: Hyundai Ioniq 5 Review: First Drive Impressions

A report in Automotive News highlights how the goal for the Koreans is to break into the top-three club of EV manufacturers. The EV club is currently being led by Tesla, and by a significant margin. But the remaining slots are still up for grabs and global brands like Hyundai, Ford, GM, Volkswagen and Mercedes creating a big buzz. Toyota - the global leader among car makers in terms of sales - is also looking at selling around 15 lakh EV units each year by 2026. And then there are Chinese players like BYD who have big ambitions as well.

Hyundai is looking at taking its annual output of EVs across the globe to around 36 lakh units by 2030. In comparative terms, Tesla manufactured 14 lakh units in 2022 and is expected to roll out 20 lakh units in 2023. But the upcoming years are likely to see Hyundai not just bolster production of existing models but have a portfolio of as many as 31 fully-electric vehicles - Hyundai, Kia and Genesis combined. In the near future, Kia is preparing the EV9 electric SUV for a US launch while Hyundai, having launched the Ioniq 6, is now prepping the Ioniq 7.