Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Euisun vowed to cooperate with the Indonesian government in establishing an electric vehicle ecosystem there, during his visit to the Southeast Asian country on Monday. Attending a government briefing event -- “Future EV Ecosystem for Indonesia” -- Chung presented the future vision of his automotive group and plans to cooperate with the Indonesian government to expand its business there, according to Hyundai Motor. “Hyundai Motor Group wil

As part of efforts to grow together with the local community, Mercedes-Benz Korea has continued to invest in research and development, training automotive experts and supporting startups, in addition to expanding its network of service centers. The German automaker runs 60 official showrooms, 75 service centers, four of which opened this year, with more than 1,250 work bays, the largest network for an import car brand in Korea. Mercedes-Benz opened its training academy in Korea in 2015, its t

Edison Motors will ask for a loan of some 700 billion to 800 billion won ($596 million-$681 million) from Korea Development Bank to acquire the troubled SsangYong Motor, its chief executive officer said Friday. The electric bus maker-led consortium looks set to be chosen as the preferred bidder for the debt-ridden SsangYong, after a bankruptcy court eliminated its strong contender from the competition, citing doubts over its funding capability. Holding an online press conference, Edison Moto

Korean Air said on Friday it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Insitu, a Boeing subsidiary, for technical cooperation to develop a lightweight and modularized tactical vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, also known as a VTOL. The cooperation will see the companies combine their core technologies -- Korean Air’s expertise in unmanned aerial vehicle development and production and Insitu’s state-of-the-art UAV technologies including high-performance mission equipment, sy

Samsung SDI announced Friday a joint venture with the world’s No. 4 automaker Stellantis to build an electric battery production plant in the United States. The two inked a memorandum of understanding on Friday, the Korean firm said. Stellantis is the first global automaker that Samsung SDI has forged a joint venture with. Samsung did not elaborate on further details of the joint entity. “We are happy to form a joint venture with Stellantis. We will do our best to satisfy custom

Korean Air said Wednesday it would resume flights to Hawaii starting Nov. 3 while Hawaiian Airlines announced plans to expand flights on the route to four times a week. Korean Air’s operation on the route was suspended in April last year due to COVID-19. The Incheon-Honolulu KE053 flight will operate three days a week, departing from Incheon International Airport every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday night. The KE054 flight departing from Honolulu for Incheon will also operate on the same

South Korean low-cost carriers are preparing for a spike in international travel amid growing signs of travel confidence. Air Seoul, one of two budget airlines owned by Asiana Airlines, announced Tuesday it would resume flights between Incheon and Guam after a suspension of some 660 days. Flying twice a week starting late December, the airline said it marks the first air travel route to be resumed for tourists since the COVID-19 pandemic. The last flight to the US island territory by the airl

Rising fuel prices and a weak local currency are dampening the mood for South Korea’s aviation industry, which has pinned hopes for recovery on travel bubbles and the easing of social distancing rules. The jet fuel price stood at $94.60 per barrel, as of Oct. 8, up 5.8 percent compared to the previous week, according to the latest data from the International Air Transport Association. Averaging $73.90 per barrel this year, the price as of early this month was also up 17.5 percent compar

Porsche Korea just built an indoor playground in Seoul as part of its Porsche Dream Playground program. The carmaker said Thursday that it has completed construction of the playground on the premises of Seokgwan Elementary School in Seongbuk-gu, northern Seoul. Holger Gerrmann, CEO of Porsche Korea, and officials from the school and ChildFund Korea attended a ceremony on Wednesday to mark the project’s completion. Through its community outreach program, Porsche Dream Playground, the c

Private and public stakeholders in the development of self-driving cars have established the Korea Autonomous Industry Association on Wednesday in order to better prepare for the coming new mobility era. Some 30 government officials and company executives attended the launching ceremony held in Yeouido, Seoul, including Park Jin-kyu, the vice minister for industry, and Hwang Seong-kyu, the vice minister for transport. Aside from private firms, two state-run organizations -- the Korea Automot

For the proliferation of electric vehicles in South Korea, it is key to upgrade power systems installed at apartment buildings, the predominant type of housing in urban areas here, according to a recent study. Without significant improvement in residential buildings’ electricity capacity, the rush to install chargers at home parking spaces will entail blackout risks, the Korea Automotive Technology Institute said in its report published Tuesday. In August, the government said it would

Hyundai Motor is to open a self-driving technology test bed at its R&D Center to speed up development, the automaker said Tuesday. Hyundai Motor, South Korea’s biggest carmaker, said it has been setting up the infrastructure needed for researchers to try out different autonomous driving technologies at its Namyang R&D Center. Located in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, the Namyang center is the main research institute for Hyundai Motor Group’s automotive affiliates, Hyundai an

Preparing for the era of self-driving cars, South Korean auto parts manufacturer Hyundai Mobis has unveiled a steering wheel that can be folded while not in use. The affiliate of Hyundai Motor said Monday that it has succeeded in developing the foldable steering wheel system that maximizes drivers comfort by allowing more space. It took around 2 years for the company to successfully develop the entirely new technology that has never been globally commercialized before and the company is curr

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Euisun on Thursday will mark his one-year anniversary since taking office at the South Korean automotive group. With the new chief at the helm, Hyundai Motor has embarked on a journey of transforming into a future smart mobility company. According to Hyundai officials on Monday, Chung, who inherited the top job from his father and now honorary group chairman Chung Mong-koo last year, has always emphasized that the future lies on resolving problems that peop

A Korean carmakers’ association has sent a letter to the US House of Representatives, asking it to reject a legislative bill to offer tax incentives for US-made electric vehicles, arguing the proposed plan could unfairly disadvantage foreign carmakers and limit customer choice. The Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association said Thursday the written letter, directed to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Richard Neal, concerns the $4,500 tax incentive plan for American electric vehicles