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U.S. VP Harris pledges to consult S. Korea over EV subsidy concerns

TOKYO/SEOUL — U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris told South Korea's prime minister on Tuesday that Washington will work to address Seoul's concerns over recently enacted electric vehicle (EV) subsidies that could disadvantage Asian automakers. The $430 billion "Inflation Reduction Act" bill enacted in August includes a host of U.S. President Joe Biden's priorities, including investments to roll back climate change and make Washington a world leader in the EV market. Among the law's provisions are requirements that EVs be assembled in North America to qualify for tax credits. The law also ends subsidies for other EV models and requires that a percentage of critical minerals used in those cars' batteries come from the United States or an American free-trade partner. Harris, visiting Japan, met with South Korea's Han Duck-soo and "underscored that she understood (Korean) concerns regarding the Act's tax incentives for electric vehicles, and they pledged to continue to consult as the law is implemented," the White House said. A senior Biden administration official said extensive conversations have already taken place within the U.S. government over how to address South Korea's concerns. "She listened very carefully and made clear our commitment to work within the U.S. government — the U.S. Trade Representative, the Treasury Department — as we look ... to help address that issue," the official said. Biden has sought to deepen business with South Korea as part of a bid to increase U.S. manufacturing jobs and build a united front against China, who he views as the country's key ideological and economic competitor. Korean officials see the new requirements as a betrayal after South Korean companies agreed to make major investments and build factories in the United States. Heavily industrialized South Korea worries the new subsidies will set back Hyundai Motor Co and its affiliate Kia Corp in the world's largest consumer market. Cars are South Korea's third-largest export. (Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt in Tokyo, and Soo-hyang Choi and Joyce Lee in Seoul; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Kim Coghill) Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Government/Legal Green Plants/Manufacturing Genesis Hyundai Kia Electric South Korea

Genesis' decision to build the Electrified GV70 in America is a sign of things to come

As Steely Dan famously sang, they call Alabama the Crimson Tide. Here in Montgomery, we’re knee-deep in a Green Tide thatÂ’s transforming the business of building and selling cars. The high-style Genesis Electrified GV70 emerging from Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama (HMMA) is the first Genesis built outside South Korea. ItÂ’s only the second made-in-America EV from a foreign-based automaker, after the Volkswagen ID.4 whose Tennessee production kicked off in July.  Get ready for many more. Spurred by the Inflation Reduction Act — whose final interpretations and outcomes remain in Washingtonian flux — automakers foreign and domestic are scrambling to onshore EV-and-battery production to boost American jobs and security, as a condition to securing lucrative tax incentives for manufacturers and consumers. Beginning in 2024, qualifying for EV credits may even require sourcing a hefty percentage of minerals and other battery materials from America or approved trade partners, a list that conspicuously does not include China or Russia. As things stand, that sticking point could make a vast number of 2024 EVs ineligible for purchase credits; though leasing a vehicle may still earn dealers a $7,500 commercial credit that they could pass along to consumers, as most currently do for EV lessees.  The electric version of GenesisÂ’ most-popular SUV is the avatar of Hyundai MotorÂ’s $10 billion American EV investment, which is expected to foster up to 8,000 good-paying jobs. Even thatÂ’s a fraction of what Atlas Public Policy estimates to be $128 billion in industry-wide investment in AmericaÂ’s EV, battery and recycling capacity through 2030 alone. HyundaiÂ’s planned onshore footprint includes a new battery factory northwest of Atlanta, and a $5.5 billion EV factory near Savannah that aims to produce Hyundai, Kia and Genesis EVs beginning in 2025. Beginning that year, Genesis says every new model introduced will be an EV, with no fossil-fuel option. And Genesis plans to phase out gasoline-powered models entirely by 2030, a similar timeline to luxury brands including Volvo and Cadillac. In Alabama, where Hyundai also builds the Elantra, Sonata, Santa Fe and Santa Cruz, an Electrified GV70 is hoisted onto a lift for the final stop on its 16-hour assembly journey.

2017 Kia Niro hybrid's $23,786 price undercuts the Toyota Prius

We're close to the commercial launch of Kia's hybrid crossover, the pointless-record-breaking but decidedly "solid" Niro. The ad campaign has begun with Melissa McCarthy voicing the TV spots, and with the Super Bowl tease already in full swing, curious customers are going to want to know what they'll have to shell out for the fuel-sipping family car. Kia has announced that the Niro will start at a base MSRP of $23,785. The 50 mpg (combined) Niro FE's sub-$24k price includes 16-inch wheels, keyless entry, a seven-inch touchscreen display with rearview camera, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The $24,095 LX adds push-button start, roof rails, and LED rear lighting. The LX also offers the $1,450 Advanced Technology Package, adding forward collision and lane departure warnings, and autonomous emergency braking. At $26,595, the EX provides heated seats, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, LED daytime running lights, fog lights, and heated power folding mirrors. It also includes a few driver assistance features, such as blind spot detection, rear cross-traffic alert, and lane change assist. A $2,300 Advanced Technology Package includes a power sunroof, smart cruise control, the collision and lane departure warnings, and autonomous emergency braking. Just below the Touring trim is the Launch Edition at $28,895. It comes in either Snow White Pearl or Aurora Black Pearl paint with a unique metallic grille and Hyper Gray 18-inch alloy wheels. It includes an eight-inch touchscreen navigation system and an eight-speaker Harman Kardon sound system. Topping the line is the $30,545 Niro Touring, which includes a power sunroof, park assist, heated and ventilated seats, heated steering wheel, and the Harman Kardon premium sound system. This level also offers the Advanced Technology Package, and $1,900 adds HID headlights, wireless phone charging, smart cruise control and the warning and braking systems offered at the other trim levels. Unfortunately, both the Touring and the Launch Edition suffer in fuel economy, at 43 mpg combined. For comparison, the base Kia Niro comes in $1,765 cheaper than the just slightly more efficient Toyota Prius's $25,550. The Ford C-Max Hybrid starts at $24,995, and falls short by about 10 mpg. The Niro is about the same price as the slightly larger, but much less efficient Hyundai Tucson.