Mass Produces Hot Stamping Steel for EVs
In February this year, Hyundai Steel started mass production of a 1.8 GPa ultra-high strength hot stamping steel, which is used for electric vehicles (EVs).
The new steel product has the advantage of making vehicles lighter and ensuring the safety of passengers in the event of a car crash. Its tensile strength is 20 percent higher compared to 1.5 GPa hot stamping steel products. When it is used in manufacturing auto parts, it can reduce their weights by about 10 percent.
Hyundai Steel supplies 145,000 sheets of the new steel product per year to Hyundai Motor for next-generation EVs -- the Genesis G80 and the new G90. The amount can be used for production of about 30,000 EVs.
The steelmaker has built 22 hot-stamping lines in its factory in South Chungcheong Province and two in its factory in Ulsan. The two factories can produce up to 58 million sheets per year, a capacity that ranks first in Korea and third in the world.
In addition, in June, Hyundai Steel developed alloy steel manufacturing technology for reduction gears with improved durability and reduced thermal strain. This technology has also obtained the New Technology Certification (NET) from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.