The presidents of Georgia Southern University, Ogeechee Technical College and Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America sat down together Wednesday and signed agreements that formalize the schools’ commitments to educate engineers and skilled maintenance and production workers for the electric vehicle manufacturing complex now under construction.
A crowd representing all three signing entities, local governments, business and development agencies gathered at 11 a.m. in the research bay area of Georgia Southern’s 140,000-square-foot Engineering and Research Building in Statesboro.
All three presidents spoke before signing the documents, formally two MOUs, or memorandums of understanding.
“This partnership signals a commitment to the future of our students, our community and the Southeast Georgia region,” said Kyle Marrero, president of Georgia Southern University.
HMG’s Metaplant America, in northern Bryan County on a site provided by a four-county Joint Development Authority and the state, is slated to begin production of electric vehicles in the first quarter of 2025. With complementary on-site production of EV batteries, it is now projected to directly create about 8,500 jobs.
Georgia Southern’s part
The Georgia Southern agreement, which Marrero noted is initially for four years but can be extended indefinitely, includes four key areas of collaboration that involve commitments by the university.
Recruitment services: Georgia Southern, he said, remains “committed to providing concierge-level recruitment services” including “on-campus information sessions” and “exclusive recruiting events” to help Hyundai’s Metaplant America secure a talented workforce.
He noted that Hyundai has already hired a number of Georgia Southern graduates. When both were interviewed after the signing, Georgia Southern Associate Vice President for Career Readiness Glenn Gibney confirmed Marrero’s report than 17 GS students and alumni have been hired directly by HMG Metaplant America. About 15 others have been hired by other divisions such as Hyundai Engineering America, for an estimate of 30-35 students and alumni already or soon to be employed by the corporate group, Gibney said.
Academic collaboration: In alliance with Ogeechee Tech, Georgia Southern will develop specialized programs “to meet the workforce needs of both the region and (the HMG plant),” Marrero said. Specifically, this includes the development of an Industrial Maintenance to Engineering degree pathway and a Production to Engineering degree pathway.
Professional development: Georgia Southern has committed to offer certification and courses, through its continuing education and professional education programs, for the Hyundai plant’s employees.
Research partnerships: “Working together, we will explore key areas of collaboration on research, innovation and commercialization projects, bringing together our world-class faculty and our talented students with (Hyundai’s) experts to provide solutions,” Marrero said.
Ogeechee Tech’s role
“I believe that we can all agree that (the Hyundai plant) and its affiliates have made quite an impact on Southeast Georgia in a relatively short period of time,” said Ogeechee Technical College President Lori Durden. “And with this impact comes a challenge to Ogeechee Tech, to Georgia Southern University, and to all our sister technical colleges, to help produce the local workforce that will be necessary to support our new manufacturing partners.”
Ogeechee Tech’s commitment, she announced, includes plans to offer two technical certificates of credit, known as TCCs, in subjects related to Hyundai Motor Group’s production of electric vehicles and the increasing use of electric and hybrid vehicles generally.
These will be an Electric Vehicle Professional TCC and a Hybrid Electric Vehicle Repair Technician TCC.
“Additionally, the college will deliver industrial maintenance training for Hyundai employees as requested,” Durden said. “This memorandum of understanding today will support the extraordinary efforts of Governor (Brian) Kemp to make Georgia the electric mobility capital of America.”
The noncredit industrial maintenance training will be housed in Ogeechee Tech’s planned Georgia Industrial Systems and Industrial Robotics Training Facility, she said. A contractor has been hired to build this almost $20 million facility, on the opposite side of U.S. Highway 301 not far from the main OTC campus south of Statesboro.
“Our goal is to get that facility open in first or second quarter of 2025,” Durden said.
Metaplant CEO
Oscar Kwon, CEO and president of Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America, signed for the manufacturing complex he leads, which is already employing some people from the region in construction and training.
Kwon, who is from South Korea and has worked for Hyundai Motor Group since 1992, was appointed chief manufacturing officer of the group’s Kia India Plant in 2017 and named last year to lead the new plant under construction here.
“HMGMA will be the nation’s largest EV manufacturing facility, producing over 300,000 EV vehicles a year (when it reaches full capacity),” he said.
Projected to cost $5.5 billion to build and equip, the complex could make electric vehicles for all three HMG nameplates: Hyundai, Kia and Genesis. HMG and LG Energy Solution recently announced that a joint venture to manufacture EV batteries at the site will eventually employ 400 people in addition to the 8,100 originally announced by HMG. The battery facility adds about $2 billion expected cost, for a total investment topping $7 billion.
“In terms of our production team members, we’re going to hire over 1,000 in the next year,” Brent Stubbs, head of learning and development for HMG Metaplant America, told the Statesboro Herald.
“We’ve already hired some people, and what’s exciting is, they’re all local,” he said. “They’re all from this area, many from right here in Bulloch County.”