The carmaker showed the production version of the Niro EV at the International Electric Vehicle Expo in
Korea. The car was earlier previewed as a concept at the CES technology show in Las Vegas in January.
The car can travel 380km on a full charge from its 64kWh battery, there’s also a cheaper version that
offers 241km range. Woong Chul Yang, the firm’s vice-chairman of research and development, said the
smaller battery will be a 32kWh unit.
The company will source some of its EV tech from the Hyundai Motor Group, its parent, and it will
feature the same powertrain as the Hyundai Ioniq EV. Kia says that it has already collected 5,000 orders
for the Niro EV in Korea, and it will go on sale by the end of this year. The car will be sold alongside
existing hydrogen fuel cell and plug-in hybrid versions. The Niro EV is part of Kia’s ACE (Autonomous,
Connected and Eco/Electric) strategy, under which the company intends to launch 16 electrified vehicles
by 2025.
Kia will launch five cars in 18 months in India, with the first being the production-spec SP Concept SUV.
Construction of its factory in Andhra Pradesh has begun as well.