‘No other choices’: In world of EVs, Hyundai not giving up on engines just yet

Hyundai is determined to play the electric game to the best of its abilities but that's by no means an indication it is ready to slam brakes on combustion engine development. Not yet anyway. With several of its key markets not providing a comprehensive playfield in terms of infrastructure support for electric vehicles (EVs), the planned development of the next-generation of combustion engine is as per plans.

Speaking to CarExpert, a top Hyundai official explained why work on EVs aren't replacing tasks set out for combustion engine development. "We are continuing for next emission levels (in the form of internal combustion engine technology). We have no other choices. I mean, we are not giving up on combustion engines, right, we are global player. And there is no infrastructure available for EVs for quite some time in several regions," Albert Biermann, Hyundai's Executive Technical Advisor.

Being a global player, no one blanket strategy may be good enough to colour prospects for a car company in today's times. While the US and several other Western European countries are rapidly embracing EVs and the supporting infrastructure is gathering pace, several other regions aren't exactly in a rush. There is also a focus on a wait period in developing countries before battery technology makes EVs more affordable. Till then, ICE (internal combustion engine) options would remain popular and widespread. And therefore, stricter emission norms would have to be met with, with Biermann pointing to Euro 7 as a case in point.

But Hyundai appears well poised to play the dual role strong till EVs become more global. Its Ioniq 5 has been around in several key markets for some time and Ioniq 6 opened on a solid footing just earlier this year, gathering 37,000 bookings within 24 hours of reservation window being opened in South Korea. The Korean company plans to add to the list of Ioniq EV models with eyes peeled big time on an all-electric SUV.