Kia electric vans to launch in Japan in 2026

Kia partnered with Sojitz Corporation to launch electric vans in Japan by 2026.

A teaser image of Kia's PV5, an electric van slated for launch in Japan in 2026. [KIA]

Kia joined forces with Japan's Sojitz Corporation to start sales of its electric vans in Japan starting in 2026, a market currently dominated by a few local brands.

The two companies have signed an agreement to debut Kia's midsize PBVs, or purpose-built vehicles, using Sojitz's networks in the Asian market in 2026.

A teaser image of Kia's PV5 [KIA]

PBVs are built on a flexible architecture with swappable bodies and are designed for specific uses, such as shuttling and last-mile delivery.

The PV5, its first PBV, will be equipped with vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology that allows the transferring of the electricity stored in EVs to other energy-consuming destinations.

The Tokyo-based Sojitz is a global trading company that is in an array of businesses including energy, chemical and food. It also handles the operation of Kia's dealership in Panama.

“We look forward to commencing PBV sales and delivering customer-centered value with the evolution of Kia’s business in the Japanese market,” said Kim Sang-dae, head of PBV business at Kia. “We will continue to introduce various PBV-related solutions optimized for local market characteristics to satisfy the demands of our Japanese customers.”

Kia's entry to the Japanese market came as Hyundai once pulled out its business from the country amid dismal sales about a decade ago. Hyundai focused on selling mid-to-large sized sedans and SUVs in Japan back then, which led to a failure in sales as small and cost-effective cars were mainstream in Japan and customers were protective of local brands Toyota, Honda Motor and Nissan Motor.

Hyundai in 2022 reentered in Japan with EVs including the Kona, Ioniq series and its hydrogen-powered Nexo SUVs. Their sales surged 164 percent to 434 this year through August, boosted by Japan's push to make 30 percent of all new vehicles sold EVs by 2030.

Kia is also considering the launch of a PV7 larger-sized van in Japan.

Kia is building a 1 trillion won ($750 million) PBV-dedicated manufacturing facility in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi, where production will start in December 2024, with an annual capacity of 150,000.

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]