Hyundai and Kia give UK car industry €100m electric jolt

Hyundai and Kia give UK car industry €100m electric jolt (FT)

• In one of the largest investments in Britain’s car industry since the vote on Brexit, Korean manufacturers Hyundai and Kia have invested €100m into UK EV start-up Arrival.
• The investment makes Arrival one of Britain’s most valuable start-ups at a valuation of €3bn and provides a much needed boost for the UK car industry at a time when overall spending in the sector has dropped sharply.
• Arrival, which designs most of its components itself, plans to build thousands of electric vans at UK plants as well as internationally and is developing a new range of vehicles alongside the Korean manufacturers following the investment.
• The vans will reportedly have a range of up to 200 miles and be priced similarly to diesel vans, with the benefit of much lower running and fuelling costs.

Analysis and Comments

• Analysts see a material end market for a battery powered delivery vans, both from a whole life cost of operation perspective and as a mechanism to reduce emissions in city centres.
• The press highlighted the growing list of cities in Europe that already have, or are planning, city centre traffic restrictions – nearly all with the aim of improving air quality
• According to a recent BBC report, the UK city Birmingham is the latest to consider banning through traffic from its city centre

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