Montgomery-area leaders meet with Hyundai officials in South Korea

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) - Montgomery and the state are looking for ways to strengthen their relationship with Hyundai. That’s why several local leaders flew to South Korea to visit the automaker and its suppliers.

The delegation that traveled the 7,000 miles includes Ellen McNair and Labaron Boone with the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce, Montgomery County Commission Chairman Doug Singleton, City Cornelius “CC” Calhoun, Secretary of Commerce Greg Canfield and several others. They are meeting with partners from the Hyundai Motor Group, including Mobis and Glovis.

This is an important relationship for Montgomery and the state. One goal of the trip is to make sure Hyundai knows these leaders value the relationship.

Hyundai has served as an economic engine for Alabama ever since it first began producing vehicle at its Montgomery plant in 2005.

“If you look at Hyundai’s investment in Montgomery and Alabama as a whole, it’s really staggering. Since they announced in 2001 $3.5 billion in investment just here from Hyundai, and then you add another $1.5 billion in investment from the supplier impacts, statewide, an annual investment of about $10 billion in terms of economic impact to the state of Alabama as a whole, and so it’s tremendous,” said Anna Buckalew with Montgomery Chamber of Commerce.

The group plans to return Friday.

Last month, Hyundai announced plans to invest $290 million for tooling and equipment upgrades at its Montgomery plant.

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