'Minimum Two To Three Months': How An ICE Raid Torpedoed Hyundai's Battery Plans

"It's hard to overstate what a big deal the Hyundai Metaplant outside Savannah, Georgia is-or was supposed to be. More than 100,000 jobs for related industries and projects. Up to 500,000 cars produced per year, including electric vehicles like the Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 9, plus hybrids too. And nearby, batteries produced for those cars-a kind of tariff armor and long-term manufacturing base in the United States for Korea Inc."

"Hyundai Global CEO José Muñoz told that the battery plant part of the Metaplant is now facing a monthslong delay because skilled South Korean workers brought over to set up and supervise production have been sent home. From that story: "This is going to give us minimum two to three months delay, because now all these people want to get back," he said. "Then you need to see how can you fill those positions. And for the most part, those people are not in the U.S.""

The Hyundai Metaplant near Savannah, Georgia was planned as a major automotive and battery hub, targeting up to 500,000 cars annually and creating more than 100,000 related jobs. Federal agents detained 475 workers, mostly Koreans, at the battery plant site, and many skilled South Korean supervisors were sent home. Battery production setup now faces a monthslong delay because replacement skilled labor is scarce in the U.S. Hyundai's global CEO said the disruption will cause at least a two- to three-month delay and complicate staffing. The project retains long-term potential but faces immediate operational and reputational challenges.

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