Kia has announced that it will build a new factory to produce electric Purpose Built Vehicles (PBVs). The new production hub for PBVs will be located within Kia’s existing Hwaseong manufacturing site in Korea and will be operational in the second half of 2025. 

Although the term Purpose Built Vehicles is still relatively uncommon in the mainstream car world (after all, aren’t all cars purpose-built?), PBVs are regarded as being a growth industry. As more manufacturers move towards building universal electric car platforms that contain the floor, battery, suspension and motors, they can quickly and cheaply adapt the body design that goes on top to suit different needs. As a result, companies like Kia will be able to build bespoke short production vehicles for delivery companies, taxi fleets and people carriers. The production process revives the old coachbuilding approach to vehicle construction that once saw the world’s first carmakers build different bodies onto a fixed framework (chassis). The practice died out when the industry switched to all-in-one steel bodies in the 1930s and 40s. 

The new plant will initially be able to build 100,000 PBVs a year with the capacity to increase production to 150,000 units annually in line with the growth of PBV market. Kia is one of the first global organisations to expand into the PBV market and sees it as a key part of its business in the future. 

According to Kia, the new PBV plant will feature state-of-the-art automation processes combined with advanced technologies that reduce carbon emissions during the production processes. The site is also equipped with clean painting and energy-saving facilities to minimise environmental impacts further. 

When operation begins in the second half of 2025, the factory will build a mid-sized PBV, Kia’s first dedicated PBV model. It will be based on Kia’s ‘eS’ skateboard platform, explicitly developed for PBVs. The new platform can flexibly accommodate various PBV model sizes in response to diverse customer demands. Following the launch of the first model, codenamed SW, Kia will develop a series of micro-sized PBVs, general logistics, fresh food, multi-seat shuttles and large PBVs that can be used as mobile offices or shops.

All Kia PBVs will be equipped with an OTA (Over the Air) functionality that can wirelessly update the vehicle’s software in real-time.

Kia will be able to build bespoke short production vehicles for delivery companies, taxi fleets and people carriers