First Us-Built Sorento Rolls Off Kia Motors Manufacturing Georgia Production Line

WEYBRIDGE, UNITED KINGDOM – November 18, 2009: Kia Motors’ first US-built vehicle, a white all-new Sorento, has rolled off the production line at Kia Motors Manufacturing Georgia (KMMG), officially opening the company’s first US production plant.

KMMG is expected to produce 300,000 vehicles a year at full capacity and employ 2,500 people, with on-site and nearby suppliers creating 7,500 additional jobs in the region.

“The start of production at our first manufacturing facility in the United States further demonstrates our commitment to growth in North America and we are proud to be adding 2,500 jobs to the local economy,” said B.M. Ahn, President and CEO, Kia Motors America (KMA) and KMMG.

Representing an investment of US$1 billion by Kia Motors, KMMG will establish new benchmarks for vehicle quality and productivity by utilizing some of the world's most advanced manufacturing techniques.

KMMG’s general assembly area is outfitted with more than a half mile of height-adjustable conveyors to achieve the best installation position for each team member and reduce physical fatigue. The plant is also remarkable in being fitted with wooden flooring in the general assembly area to provide a more comfortable and forgiving work environment for team members.

Built on 2,200 acres, the complex includes a body stamping facility, a transmission shop where the Sorento’s six-speed automatic transmission is produced and a two mile test track. The plant’s 186-foot-long stamping press delivers 5,400 tons of pressure to stamp steel into 17 different types of vehicle panels for the Sorento, operating at a speed of seven to 15 strokes per minute.

The massive stamping equipment ranges from almost 20 feet below the floor to 39.4 feet above ground.

KMMG continues Kia Motors’ aggressive investment in the US market. Since 2002, more than US$1.3 billion has been invested in various facilities throughout the country, including a dedicated corporate campus and design center in Irvine, California, a state-of-the-art research and development centre in Ann Arbor, Michigan and a custom-built vehicle proving ground in Mojave, California.

Kia now has production facilities in Korea – at Hwasung, Sohari and Kwangju as well as a joint-project facility close to Hwasung – in Slovakia and in China plus CKD operations in a number of Asian and African countries plus Russia. Total global production capacity currently stands at 2.56 million vehicles per year with the opening of Georgia. That figures is comprised of 1.53 million in Korea, 430,000 in China, 300,000 in Slovakia and now 300,000 in the US.