New automobile parts plant to open in Alabama

FILE - In this April 17, 2019, file photo the 2020 Hyundai Venue is shown at the New York Auto Show. As safety features such as automatic emergency braking and lane-centering make their way from luxury vehicles down to lower-cost rides for the masses, distracted driver alert systems are coming with them. At last month’s New York International Auto Show, Hyundai and Subaru both announced systems in mainstream vehicles. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File) FILE - In this April 17, 2019, file photo the 2020 Hyundai Venue is shown at the New York Auto Show. As safety features such as automatic emergency braking and lane-centering make their way from luxury vehicles down to lower-cost rides for the masses, distracted driver alert systems are coming with them. At last month’s New York International Auto Show, Hyundai and Subaru both announced systems in mainstream vehicles. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)

By Associated Press October 2, 2019 1 min read

AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — An auto parts manufacturer says it’s building a new plant in Alabama.

Gov. Kay Ivey announced the news Tuesday. She says South Korean company Shinhwa Group is investing $42 million in a facility and will create 95 jobs in Auburn, the company’s first manufacturing facility in the United States. Construction is already underway. Phase 1 of the project is expected to be finished by the summer.

Shinhwa will initially make drive shafts for vehicles built by Hyundai Motor Manufacturing’s plant in Montgomery as well as for Kia Motor Manufacturing’s plant, just across the state line in West Point, Georgia.

Alabama Department of Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield says the company is a “welcome addition” to the state’s network of “high-caliber auto suppliers.”