Hyundai Rotem is writing the export myth of electric and high-speed trains

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Jiyeon Han

han.jiyeon@mk.co.kr

Input :

2026-08-25 17:16:08

Updated :

2026-08-25 19:20:22

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Uzbekistan high-speed railway manufactured by Hyundai Rotem. Modern Rotem

The Hyundai Rotem railway business is rapidly transforming from domestic orders to exports. Just two years ago, sales were half in Korea and abroad, but the share of overseas sales exceeded 60% this year. Large-scale projects won in succession in Australia, the United States, and Morocco have entered the production stage, and have recently won additional orders in Taiwan, expanding their overseas business.

According to the industry on the 25th, Hyundai Rotem recently won an order for the supply of electric and mechanical (E&M) facilities of the Jungri extension line (the section connected to Jungri-gu) of the urban railway "Green Line" ordered by Taoyuan City, Taiwan. The project is worth about 258.6 billion won.

In the first half of this year, Hyundai Rotem Railway's export sales amounted to 679.1 billion won, 1.5 times higher than domestic sales (448.9 billion won). Even in terms of annual performance, the rate of export growth is remarkable. Railway export sales jumped 59.6% from 757 billion won in 2024 to 1.208 trillion won last year. Domestic sales rose only 19.4% from 738.6 billion won to 881.6 billion won during the same period. In other words, export sales growth has exceeded three times that of domestic demand.

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The share of exports in total rail sales also steadily rose from 50.6% in 2024 to 57.8% last year and to 60.2% in the first half of this year.

Railroads have been considered a representative domestic infrastructure industry that has grown based on the construction of national infrastructure networks such as subways and high-speed railways and the demand for replacement of old vehicles.

The fact that overseas sales of Hyundai Rotem, the nation's largest railway company, have begun to outpace domestic demand shows that the domestic railway industry is transforming into a full-fledged export industry away from the domestic market.

Hyundai Rotem has accumulated a portfolio of overseas orders by winning a series of major overseas projects in recent years.

It won an order for a Queensland electric vehicle business worth about 1.3 trillion won in 2023 in Australia, and a Los Angeles Metro train business worth about 900 billion won in 2024 in the United States. Last year, it won an order for a 2.2027 trillion won electric car project in Morocco, the largest single railway project ever. It also succeeded in exporting Korean high-speed trains to Uzbekistan for the first time in 2024.

Starting this year, as production of existing orders such as Australia and Uzbekistan begins in earnest, overseas orders accumulated so far are being reflected in sales one after another. The railway vehicle business takes a considerable amount of time to design, manufacture, and deliver after orders, so there is a time difference between orders and actual sales. Large-scale overseas supplies secured in recent years have entered the production stage, leading to an increase in export sales this year.

The expansion of railway exports leads to an expansion of work in the domestic parts industry. In the case of the Moroccan train business, which was awarded last year, about 90% of vehicle parts will be procured from more than 200 small and medium-sized companies in Korea.

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In other words, Hyundai Rotem's overseas orders lead to joint exports of domestic railway parts makers. In particular, railways are a long-term industry where maintenance and parts supply continue for decades once vehicles are supplied, and domestic parts industry work can continue for a long time following orders.