(LEAD) Kia Motors to invest 29 tln won in future mobility

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SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Yonhap) -- Kia Motors Corp., South Korea's second-biggest carmaker by sales, said Tuesday it will invest 29 trillion won (US$25 billion) in electric vehicles and business diversification by 2025.

Kia Motors made the announcement as it aims to transform itself into a leading electric vehicle manufacturer while reducing the ratio of combustion engine vehicles it makes.

"We are not simply adapting to changes in the automobile market but leading innovation to make a leap forward to become a leading player (in next-generation vehicles)," Kia Chief Executive and President Park Han-woo said at an investor relations session in Seoul.

With the planned investments, Kia aims to increase the number of all-electric models in its lineup from the current two to 11 and achieve a share of 6.6 percent of the global EV market in 2025, up from the current 2 percent, the company said in a statement.

In 2021, Kia plans to launch a new all-electric model in the domestic market.

The maker of the K5 sedan and the Sorento sport utility vehicle aims to sell 500,000 EVs and 1 million environmentally friendly vehicles in global markets outside China in 2026.

Kia also wants to achieve an operating profit margin of 5 percent in 2022 and increase it to 6 percent in 2025 based on the investment.

For the whole of 2019, sales dropped 1.5 percent to 2,770,693 vehicles from 2,812,200 cars the year before, the statement said.

kyongae.choi@yna.co.kr
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