SEOUL, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Hyundai Motor, South Korea's biggest automaker, was in talks with potential investors for billions of U.S. dollars of project to jointly develop its headquarters complex in the country's capital Seoul.
"Hyundai Motor Group is in talks with various potential investors for joint development project for its Global Business Center to be established in southern Seoul," Hyundai said in a statement Monday.
Showing interests in the project were pension funds, sovereign wealth funds and other global investors, according to the statement.
Hyundai purchased the property in the Gangnam district of Seoul at 10.55 trillion won (9.3 billion U.S. dollars) from the state-run power supplier Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) in 2014.
Nearly half of the purchase cost was shared by Kia Motors and Hyundai Mobis, affiliated with Hyundai.
Additional cost for the mega-development project was estimated at about 3.7 trillion won (3.3 billion U.S. dollars). It can increase financial burden for Hyundai Motor Group, the country's second-biggest conglomerate.
"The joint development is expected to alleviate the group's direct investment scale and enhance the group's overall brand image," said the South Korean carmaker.
Hyundai aims to complete the construction of its headquarters complex by 2023.
