Exclusive: Hyundai’s Georgia plant to produce Kia Sportage as first hybrid in September

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Exclusive: Hyundai’s Georgia plant to produce Kia Sportage as first hybrid in September

Published: 09 Mar. 2026, 05:00 Updated: 09 Mar. 2026, 07:47

SARAH CHEA
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Spot robot dogs, developed by Boston Dynamics, inspect a car at Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America in Georgia. [HYUNDAI MOTOR]

The first hybrid model to roll off Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA) in Georgia will be the Kia Sportage SUV, with mass production set for September, according to a source familiar with the plan.

The production of the Sportage, Kia’s best-selling model in the U.S. market, marks the auto group’s landmark push towards hybrids as the EV slump drives up sales. Currently, only Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 9 EVs are in mass production at the factory.

[단독] 현대차그룹 美 메타플랜트서 첫 하이브리드 ‘스포티지 HEV’ 9월 양산

“Work is currently underway in the Georgia plant to install an additional production line for hybrid vehicles, with mass production scheduled to begin around September,” the source told the Korea JoongAng Daily on the condition of anonymity.

“Production will start with the Sportage, and capacity will be expanded gradually over time,” the source added.

The latest decision is aimed at easing the tariff burden imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump. Korean automakers now face tariffs of about 15 percent on vehicles shipped to the United States, a striking departure from the long-standing zero-tariff regime that prevailed under the bilateral free trade agreement.

HMGMA, which has an annual production capacity of 300,000 vehicles, began operations in March last year. Yet production has remained subdued at some 62,000 units for the whole year amid a slowdown in EV models.

The Sportage was Kia’s top-selling model in the United States last year, with 182,823 units sold. Hybrid variants accounted for 63,390 of those vehicles, or roughly 34.7 percent of total sales.

By volume, the Sportage hybrid ranked as the second best-selling hybrid model among all vehicles sold in the United States by Hyundai Motor and Kia, trailing only the Tucson Hybrid, which recorded sales of 72,578 units.

Until now, Kia has produced all Sportage hybrids destined for the U.S. market at its plant in Gwangju and exported them overseas. Hyundai is also pushing to localize production of the Tucson Hybrid, which is currently produced at Hyundai’s Ulsan plant, at its Alabama plant. Hyundai already manufactures the Santa Fe Hybrid at its Alabama plant, while Kia has recently begun producing the Telluride hybrid at its Georgia facility.

Hyundai and Kia’s foothold in the U.S. market has been accelerating in recent years, despite the EV slowdown, thanks to robust hybrid sales. Combined hybrid sales by Hyundai and Kia in the United States came in at a new high of 331,023 units last year, up 48.8 percent on year.

Euisun Chung, executive chair of Hyundai Motor Group, appears on stage at a completion ceremony for the Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America in the city of Savannah of the U.S. state of Georgia in this photo provided by the group on March 27. [YONHAP]

Hyundai alone sold 189,881 hybrid vehicles in the U.S. market, nearly three times its EV sales of 69,533 units. Of total sales, hybrids accounted for 18 percent, also hitting a new high from 16 percent last year and 11.1 percent in 2024.

“Hybrid vehicles typically command prices more than 10 percent higher than comparable internal-combustion models, meaning they are also likely to contribute to rising average selling prices in the U.S. market,” said Song Sun-jae, an analyst at Hana Securities.

“The start of hybrid production at HMGMA in 2026 will serve as a catalyst for market-share gains,” Song added. “We expect the combined U.S. market share of Hyundai and Kia to rise from 12 percent in 2026 to 12.4 percent in 2027.

HMGMA is central to the group’s long-term growth in the United States, where it also deployed Atlas humanoid robot, developed by Boston Dynamics, for pilot operation. Once at full operational capacity, the automaker plans to expand the plant’s annual production to 500,000 vehicles.

BY SARAH CHEA [[email protected]]