Hyundai Motor, Grab deepen partnership for EV adoption in Southeast Asia

South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Group and Grab Holdings Inc. have agreed to strengthen their partnership in mobility services to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles in Southeast Asia.

Both parties will launch an initiative to support Grab drivers in adopting electric cars starting in Singapore this year and expand it to Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam, Hyundai Motor said in a statement on Wednesday.

The project is aimed at lowering the entry barrier for Grab drivers to adopt electric cars by slashing the cost of EV ownership and through EV financing.

According to Hyundai, survey results from an initial EV pilot project in Singapore found that high costs, lack of charging locations and long waiting times for charging were top barriers hindering Grab driver-partners from adopting EVs.

Hence, the enhanced partnership will focus on addressing some of these barriers by piloting new EV business models such as leasing EVs with a battery-as-a-service model or car-as-a-service model and EV financing, it said.

The two parties also plan to conduct an EV feasibility study and findings will be provided to governments and ecosystem partners in those countries to better address the day-to-day operations of ride-hailing drivers and delivery partners.

STRENGTHENED TIES WITH ‘UBER OF SOUTHEAST ASIA’

Since their initial partnership in 2018, Hyundai and Grab have launched a series of EV pilots in Southeast Asia, starting with Singapore in 2019 and Indonesia in 2020.

The pilots saw the deployment of 200 Hyundai Kona EVs in Grab’s GrabRentals fleet in Singapore.

In Indonesia, Grab launched its GrabCar Elektrik fleet of Hyundai IONIQ vehicles at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta airport.

“With Grab having the largest driver network in the region and Hyundai’s comprehensive mobility solutions, we are confident that together we can help to increase the adoption of EVs and ultimately reduce carbon emissions throughout the region,” said Kim Min-sung, vice president of Hyundai Motor Group’s Innovation Division.

“Beyond the ongoing projects, we expect additional cooperation with Grab to be a key driver to lead the mobility market of the future in Southeast Asia.”

Often dubbed “Uber of Southeast Asia,” Grab has been diversifying its operations across Asia, evolving from a ride-hailing app to a Southeast Asian super app that offers several consumer services, including food delivery and financial services.

It operates in Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.

In 2018, Hyundai Motor Co. and sister firm Kia Corp. invested $200 million and $75 million, respectively, in Grab.

Write to Byung-Uk Do at dodo@hankyung.com
In-Soo Nam edited this article.