The Kia-exclusive electric vehicle series EV is expected to surpass a cumulative global sales of 500,000 units this month. It has been five years since the release of its first dedicated electric vehicle, the EV6, in 2021. About 80% of the sales are from overseas. With the entry of the compact sedan EV4 and the purpose-built vehicle (PBV) PV5 into the overseas market, the presence of Kia's electric vehicles, which have been strengthening their electrification strategy, is expected to grow even further.
According to the automobile industry on the 24th, Kia has sold a total of 485,055 units from the launch of the EV series in 2021 until the first half of this year. Of these, 378,606 units were sold overseas and 106,449 units in Korea. A dedicated electric vehicle is a model equipped with the Hyundai Motor Group's electric vehicle platform (E-GMP). The dedicated electric vehicle Ioniq series from Hyundai Motor, including the Genesis GV60, surpassed cumulative sales of 500,000 units in January this year.
The sales figures for the EV series were 29,482 units in 2021, 83,411 units in 2022, 131,242 units in 2023, and 124,835 units in 2024. Although sales are expected to decline from 2023, there are also forecasts that this year's sales will increase.
This year, 116,085 units were sold in the first half, and the compact sedan EV4, the first vehicle in the EV series, is being delivered to consumers. A Kia official noted, "Sales of electric vehicles typically decline towards the end of the year, but there is a possibility for increases due to new vehicle launches."
By model, the cumulative sales of the EV6, which was the first to launch, were the highest. The cumulative sales of the EV6 reached 282,639 units, with 66,964 units sold domestically and 215,675 units overseas. Following that, the EV3 had sales of 101,162 units, the large SUV EV9 had 79,312 units, and the EV5 had 18,621 units. The EV3 is a model that Kia launched, emphasizing its cost performance in leading the era of electric vehicle popularity.
The compact sedan EV4 is scheduled to be unveiled in the European market in the second half of this year. It is being produced at the Slovakia plant, which is the European manufacturing base for the Hyundai Motor Group. Smaller-bodied models are popular in Europe, and Kia plans to increase its market share in Europe by launching the EV2, which is smaller than the EV3 and EV4, next year.
Kia is expanding its electric vehicle lineup with the launch of the PV5 this month. It plans to release the PV7 in 2027 and the PV9 in 2029, thereby expanding its PBV lineup. Kia has set a goal to sell 133,000 units of PBV in Europe and 73,000 units in Korea by 2030.