Hyundai Motor challenges Tesla with the launch of its first electric sedan

Hyundai Motor Co on Thursday launched its first electric sedan, the Ioniq 6, which the South Korean automaker is betting will help it capture a bigger share of the electric vehicle (EV) market dominated by Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) Inc.

The Ioniq 6 is one of more than 31 electric models that Hyundai Motor Group, which includes Hyundai Motor, sister company Kia Corp and premium brand Genesis, plans to introduce by 2030 to secure a projected 12% share of the global EV market. Hyundai's sedan will expand its EV range beyond its existing crossovers and SUVs to compete head-to-head against Tesla in a popular category. Excluding China, the world's largest auto market, Hyundai and Kia together accounted for 13.5% of electric vehicles shipped globally from January to May this year, according to industry tracker SNE Research. This was second only to Tesla, which had a 22% share in the same period. Hyundai said the Ioniq 6 will have a driving range of about 610 kilometers (380 miles), about 30% more than the Ioniq 5 crossover. "We use the same (battery) cell chemistry but ... we have significantly increased the energy density by maximizing the amount of battery per pack," Hyundai Vice President Kim Yong Wha said. The automaker did not disclose the price of the Ioniq 6. Hyundai said it will have a choice of two battery packs, 53 kilowatts per hour (kWh) and 77.4 kWh, and will start production at its Asan plant in South Korea later this year. A market launch schedule will be announced later. Hyundai usually buys batteries from LG Energy Solution Ltd and SK Innovation's SK On, and Kia recently adopted China's CATL batteries for its cars sold in South Korea, but the automaker did not disclose the source of its Ioniq 6 cars. The launch comes after Hyundai announced plans to build dedicated EV plants both domestically and in the United States, where the Ioniq 5 and Kia's EV 6 SUV have together become the second best-selling EVs after Tesla cars and ahead of Ford Motor (NYSE:F) Co's Mustang Mach-E. "Both vehicles address two major flaws that previous EV vehicles have had in the U.S. market: styling and lack of range," Ivan Drury, senior insight manager at Edmunds, said of the Ioniq 5 and EV 6.