Hyundai Motor Group is establishing Brazil as a forward base for its South American hydrogen business, building a comprehensive ecosystem that spans from hydrogen production to mobility applications. This move expands the $1.1 billion (approximately 1.6 trillion won) investment promised in 2024 into concrete business initiatives.
According to South Korea’s presidential office and industry sources on the 29th, Hyundai Motor Group unveiled plans at the South Korea-Brazil Business Roundtable in São Paulo on the 28th (local time) to pursue technical cooperation on green hydrogen production, hydrogen truck deployment, and small modular reactors (SMR), aligning with Brazil’s decarbonization policies. The event was attended by South Korean President Lee Jae-myung, Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung, Brazilian Vice President Geraldo Alckmin, and other government and business officials from both countries.
Kim Yong-beom, South Korea’s presidential policy chief, stated in a briefing, “At the business roundtable attended by President Lee Jae-myung, Hyundai Motor Group presented technical cooperation plans linked to Brazil’s eco-friendly policies.”
The blueprint drawn by Hyundai Motor Group goes far beyond selling one or two vehicle models locally. Hyundai Motor and its group affiliates plan to actively explore new business opportunities in hydrogen and renewable energy, including pioneering new markets for hydrogen commercial vehicles and hydrogen trams, as well as green hydrogen production, hydrogen fuel cell system supply, and renewable energy power plant construction.
Specifically, Hyundai Motor Group is pursuing a strategy of first deploying hydrogen commercial vehicles like the Xcient to create hydrogen demand, which will then attract investment in the production and refueling infrastructure needed for vehicle operation. Green hydrogen is produced by electrolyzing water using electricity generated from renewable sources such as solar and wind power. The process emits almost no carbon, but securing stable demand is crucial due to high electricity prices and electrolyzer equipment costs.
SMRs represent a separate axis of energy cooperation from green hydrogen. These next-generation reactors, assembled on-site from factory-built modules, offer advantages over large nuclear plants, including shorter construction times and the flexibility to respond to regional power demands. Hyundai Motor Group is reviewing SMRs as a means to reliably supply power and heat to industrial complexes while expanding low-carbon energy sources.
The Brazil hydrogen business concept first took concrete shape during Executive Chair Chung’s visit to the country in 2024. In February of that year, Chung met with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and pledged to invest $1.1 billion in Brazil’s eco-friendly technologies and green hydrogen by 2032. The plans emerging from Chair Chung’s latest visit to Brazil represent an expansion of that two-year-old investment promise into more specific business areas.
Hyundai Motor Group also presented plans to expand its hydrogen network across Central and South America, centered on Brazil, and to pioneer the hydrogen commercial vehicle market while supplying fuel cell systems. To this end, the group has established a dedicated organization for its Latin American hydrogen business in Brazil. The assessment is that long-term market growth requires going beyond merely selling hydrogen vehicles to directly producing hydrogen for local use and connecting refueling and logistics infrastructure.
Hyundai Motor Group is focusing on Brazil as the largest automotive market in Latin America and a country with active utilization of eco-friendly fuels. The vision is to strengthen its local business foundation by expanding the scope of cooperation from its existing internal combustion engine vehicle-centered operations into hydrogen and clean energy sectors. Hyundai Motor currently produces the compact hatchback HB20 and the Creta SUV at its Piracicaba plant in Brazil. The HB20, equipped with a flex-fuel system that uses both ethanol and gasoline, continues to post steady sales in the local market.
However, Hyundai Motor is not resting on its current achievements. When asked by reporters about the outlook for the Brazilian market, Executive Chair Chung said, “There’s a long way to go,” adding, “China is also pushing hard (in market penetration) these days.” The outlook is that market competition will intensify further as Chinese automakers mount an increasingly aggressive offensive.
The Brazilian government also assessed Hyundai Motor as a key partner company. Brazilian Vice President Geraldo Alckmin stated, “Korean companies like Samsung, LG, and Hyundai Motor are very familiar names to Brazilian consumers,” adding, “The foundation has been laid to expand cooperation in various fields, including semiconductors, shipbuilding, and bio.”
Beyond hydrogen cooperation, the summit also strengthened bilateral collaboration in various high-tech industries. Critical strategic mineral cooperation was a key agenda item, and the two countries agreed to jointly build supply chains for critical minerals, including rare earths, through a ‘Joint Statement on Critical Strategic Minerals’ annexed to the leaders’ joint statement. The agreement goes beyond mineral extraction to jointly building supply chains extending to refining and product manufacturing, while promoting technology exchange and expanded investment.
A total of seven memoranda of understanding (MOUs) were signed among private-sector companies. Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer, SK Biopharmaceuticals and Eurofarma, and Posco International, among others, entered into cooperation agreements. Samsung Electronics decided to pursue collaboration aligned with Brazil’s digital transformation policies, while Naver announced plans to build a Latin American artificial intelligence (AI) ecosystem with Brazil as its hub.
Hanwha Ocean noted that Hanwha Aerospace hopes to participate in Brazilian defense projects, while HD Hyundai Construction Equipment requested policy support from both governments, including the swift advancement of the South Korea-Mercosur agreement. Korean Air explained it would support expanded bilateral trade based on its direct cargo routes to Brazil.
With this business roundtable as a catalyst, Hyundai Motor Group’s investment in Brazil is evolving from simple vehicle sales into a comprehensive cooperation model encompassing energy transition and future mobility. The attempt to establish, for the first time in South America, a vertically integrated hydrogen ecosystem centered on the twin pillars of green hydrogen and SMRs—connecting production, storage, transportation, and utilization—is expected to mark a critical watershed in the global race for hydrogen market leadership.
