ELLABELL, Georgia -- Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Chung Euisun on Wednesday underscored the role of Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America -- the Korean auto giant’s latest manufacturing plant in Bryan County, Georgia -- as a place to build the future of mobility.

“At Hyundai, we don’t just invest in technologies and automobiles,” said Chung in his welcoming remarks during the opening ceremony of HMGMA in Ellabell.

“We invest, first and foremost, in relationships. In the people we work with. In our partners. Our neighborhoods. Our communities. We don’t just come to build a plant. We come to put down roots.”

Mentioning the leadership of the state and federal governments, the support of Georgia’s business community and the capabilities of HMGMA employees, the chief of the Korean auto conglomerate composed of Hyundai, Kia and Genesis underlined that “the exciting future is coming into focus.”

“Every vehicle that leaves this plant will bear your imprint,” said Chung. “In safety and in comfort, they will carry children to school and parents to work; they will take families and friends on new adventures.”

The Korean auto conglomerate invested about $8 billion to set up HMGMA, a state-of-the-art auto cluster covering 11.76 million square meters of ground. The official opening ceremony came about two years after the groundbreaking.

The Georgia-based plant began rolling out Hyundai’s award-winning electric sport utility vehicle Ioniq 5 in October last year and started producing the automaker’s flagship three-row electric SUV Ioniq 9 earlier this month. With the current annual production capacity of 300,000 cars expected to be increased by 200,000 in the future, HMGMA will roll out EVs and hybrid vehicles under the Kia and Genesis brands later on, according to Hyundai Motor.

Chung told reporters on the sidelines of the event that HMGMA will serve as a linchpin of the group’s plants across the world by integrating autonomous artificial intelligence and robotics technologies into manufacturing processes.

Calling it an honor to announce the automaker’s $21 billion additional investment in the US through 2028 alongside President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday, the Hyundai Motor chief downplayed the potential influence of the firm’s financial commitment on US tariffs.

“Tariffs are a concern between countries,” said Chung. “We don’t think one company can largely change tariff policies. If it can have some positive effects, we would be very proud of what we have been trying to do. But the government should lead the negotiations once tariffs are announced, and that will be the starting point.”

Hours after the HMGMA opening ceremony, Trump announced a 25 percent tariff on all auto imports without mentioning any exceptions. Signing an executive order at the White House, the US president said the auto tariffs will go into effect on April 2.