Hyundai to Build Car Factory in Saudi Arabia

South Korea's President Yoon Suk-yeol announced on Sunday that Hyundai Motor Group has agreed to build a car factory in Saudi Arabia in partnership with the Public Investment Fund, the Kingdom's sovereign wealth fund.

Yoon made the announcement in Riyadh, where the Public Investment Fund and Hyundai signed the agreement.

A joint statement revealed that the annual production capacity of the factory would be 50,000 vehicles, utilizing both electricity and gas.

This marks the first South Korean car factory in the Middle East.

The statement stated, "The Fund's share in the joint project will be 70 percent, while Hyundai will own 30 percent... The estimated investment in the project exceeds 1.8 billion Saudi riyals ($500 million)."

Hyundai Motor Group, the world's third-largest automaker by sales, is embarking on the construction of a plant in Saudi Arabia as the Kingdom seeks to diversify its economy away from oil and aims to produce over 300,000 vehicles annually by 2030.

The joint statement, published by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), noted that Hyundai would be a "strategic technology partner for the development of the new factory by providing technical and commercial support."

Yoon stated that the first cars from the production line would be available in 2026. There were no specific details about the factory's location or the models to be manufactured there.

Yoon visited Saudi Arabia, where he met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. He arrived with a delegation of top business figures, including Hyundai Motor Group's CEO E.S. Chung.

The Saudi Press Agency reported that Yoon and Prince Mohammed signed several agreements, including the establishment of strategic partnerships and cooperation in the field of "green" hydrogen.

Additionally, South Korea and Saudi Arabia are set to sign 51 agreements and memorandums of understanding worth $15.6 billion during the Korean President's visit to the Kingdom.