Hyundai, Kia deny EV talks with Apple

The iPhone maker reportedly plans to produce its first EV by 2024

Shares of South Korea's Hyundai and its affiliate Kia dropped following an announcement they are not in talks with Apple over an electric car manufacturing project. AP

South Korean auto maker Hyundai denied it is in talks with Apple on autonomous electric cars, a month after it confirmed early-stage discussion with the iPhone manufacturer, sending its shares skidding.

In a regulatory filing on the Korea Exchange, Hyundai said it wanted to clarify "rumours" about a joint effort between its affiliate Kia Motors and Apple.

The company said it received proposals from a number of foreign companies to jointly develop self-driving electric vehicles but nothing has been finalised yet.

"We are not conducting consultations with Apple on the development of autonomous vehicles," Hyung-geun Bae, the company’s director and head of finance, said.

"We are considering additional cooperation with a number of overseas companies regarding the autonomous electric vehicle business … but this has not been decided yet," he added.

Shares of Hyundai and Kia fell 4.4 per cent and 12.2 per cent, respectively, in Seoul trading following the filing.

Reports emerged in December that Apple plans to produce its first EV by 2024.

On January 8, Hyundai said it was in early talks with Apple, sending its stocks up nearly 20 per cent. Kia's shares jumped more than 60 per cent on the news as well. A report last week by  DongA Ilbo said Kia would receive an investment of $3.6 billion from Apple to make EVs, sending its stock up 10 per cent.

Apple secretly began its automated and EVs development – known as Project Titan – in 2014, according to Reuters. The company has yet to publicly discuss any of its automobile goals, but nearly 5,000 engineers and scientists have been working on the project since 2018.

The company faces stiff competition in the electric car market from dedicated EV maker Tesla as well as automotive giants like Audi, BMW, Volkswagen and General Motors.

The Covid-19 pandemic has increased the focus on making the car industry greener.

Kia, which is South Korea's second-largest automobile manufacturer after parent company Hyundai, will invest $26bn by 2025 on developing its own EV and self-driving technology. It aims to sell more than 500,000 EVs a year by 2026 and 800,000 in next 10 years.