General Motors (GM) and Hyundai are nearing an agreement on a partnership that would allow Hyundai to supply two electric commercial van models to GM in North America, reported Reuters citing a source familiar with the talks.
According to Hyundai documents reviewed by the news agency, South Korean automaker, in exchange, may receive pickup trucks from GM for sale under the Hyundai brand in the region.
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The discussions encompass a range of collaborations, including joint purchasing or development in areas such as computing chips, next-generation batteries, and battery materials.
These talks are driven by the increasing competition from Chinese electric vehicle (EV) makers and the looming threat of a global trade war, which has prompted the companies to consider sharing products to reduce expenditure.
Under the proposed arrangement, Hyundai would manufacture two electric van models for both its own and GM brands, initially importing them from South Korea before potentially shifting production to North America by 2028.
For producing vans in North America, Hyundai is exploring the possibility of building a new plant, expanding an existing facility, or outsourcing the production.
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By GlobalDataOn the pickup side, discussions focus on GM sharing its midsized trucks with Hyundai.
While Hyundai has expressed interest in GM’s full-sized pickups, this option has not yet been tabled by GM.
The pickup-sharing deal is expected to take longer to finalise compared to the commercial van agreement.
In addition to vans and trucks, Hyundai may also supply GM with compact SUVs to strengthen its product lineup in Brazil.
Hyundai previously announced in January 2025 that it was in talks to supply electric commercial vehicles to GM, as part of a preliminary agreement to explore cooperation on vehicles, supply chains, and clean-energy technologies.
US tariff threats are adding complexity to the GM-Hyundai partnership discussions, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The partnership may also extend to sharing sales and service networks for these vans.
Recently, Hyundai Motor said it plans to build a hydrogen fuel cell plant in South Korea.
This will be Hyundai’s second fuel cell manufacturing plant globally, following its existing plant in Guangzhou, China.
