No one can deny that KIA has not put all the meat on the grill. The Koreans have very ambitious launch plans for the coming years and Europe will become a fundamental axis of their global electricity strategy. The launch of new models will be accompanied by the start of production in the old continent in the year 2025. A compact will be the first to be produced at the plant in Slovenia, but it will not be the last in the following courses. This has been revealed exclusively by Automotive News Europe.
Kia has been one of the pioneering brands in the production and launch of electric vehicles for years. The KIA EV6 has been the first in a new and hopeful stage of release. Over the next few years, the Seoul-based company plans to present 14 different fully electric models. The EV6 will be accompanied by different models and bodies that will make KIA one of the most popular brands in terms of electric car share, at least that is what is expected.
Fourteen models before the end of 2027 mean that the launches have to happen in a chain one after another from next year. Europe, in its environmental strategy for 2035, will have a privileged place in the launch offer. The KIA EV9 will be the next to see the light. It is a midsize crossover, similar in size to a KIA Sorento, but powered exclusively by electric technology. We have already been able to see the first advances, although the model is currently finalizing its latest development tests.
After him, a small crossover will be presented, although its release date is not scheduled for before 2024. That means that at the end of next year it should be presented in society. We are talking about an SUV smaller than a KIA Sportage. A 100% electric B-SUV that will stand up to the emerging market where we currently find models such as the Peugeot e-2008 or the Opel Mokka-e. In the coming years, the offer will be considered by many manufacturers, including Volkswagen.
However, the real turning point for Europe will come in 2025. It will be then when KIA presents a compact 100% electric direct rival to the Volkswagen ID.3 . Not only will its format be striking, but so will the fact that the production will take place in Europe. In this way, KIA lays more eggs in the electrified basket of the old continent, placing it as one of its main bases. At first, only the compact will be produced, although plans indicate more models in the following years.
The details of that compact are at the moment a secret. Its size will be below the EV6, so it would not be strange to propose an official name such as KIA EV5. The plant in Slovakia would be in charge of its assembly. The Zilina facilities will have to adapt to this particularity, and for this, the Hyundai Group will increase its investment in the plant. Updated lines, and adapted facilities that during this time will maintain the production of the KIA Ceed, Xceed, and the electrified versions of the KIA Sportage.
