Kia Niro Plus Is A Practical EV For Taxi Operators

Kia recently introduced the Niro Plus, which it says is its first-ever "purpose-built vehicle," or PBV. We were under the impression that every Kia had a purpose, but there you go. The purpose of the Niro Plus is to provide sustainable mobility solutions that help people and businesses move beyond traditional automotive solutions.

In this case, the Niro Plus will be sold in South Korea as a general model and zero-emission taxi. To make it more affordable for this application, Kia used the first-generation Niro as a starting point and made it more suitable for car-hailing services. It's not based on the all-new, recently unveiled Niro EV. Earlier this year, Kia introduced the Ray Van, a single-seater delivery vehicle for small cargo delivery services.

Kia is one of the first manufacturers to fill the gap for EV commercial vehicles. Rivian also famously received a load of cash from Amazon to design an EV delivery van, and Mercedes-Benz is also investing heavily in EV vans.

However, Kia plans to become the market leader by 2030, and selling cheap PBVs based on older platforms is an excellent way to start. In addition to the Niro Plus, Kia is also building a dedicated platform upon which PBVs of different shapes and sizes can sit, meeting evolving customer needs and market trends. Kia expects the global PBV market to mature by 2025, and by then, the dedicated platform will be ready to deploy.

"Kia is transforming its business strategy to focus on popularizing EVs and introducing new mobility products that are tailored to the needs of users in markets around the world. The Niro Plus is our first step into the world of PBVs, a market that holds great potential for future development," said Sangdae Kim, head of Kia's eLCV Business Division.