Georgia's Kia Plant Opens On Limited Schedule Due To Pandemic

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The Kia Motors plant in West Point, Georgia, opened again Monday May 4, after closing in March due to the pandemic. / AP

The Kia plant in West Point, Georgia, opened for limited production Monday.

While the plant usually operates with three shifts over 24 hours, only the day shift — from 6:30 a.m. through 3 p.m. — will manufacture cars until further notice.The Kia plant in West Point Georgia opened for production Monday. GPB’s Ellen Eldridge has more.

The facility is the only Kia manufacturing plant in the United States and produces around 340,000 vehicles a year, but it shut down on March 30 citing issues with the supply chain.

Last month, the plant began making medical face shields.

But now, the plant is open for one of three shifts according to the information hotline.

"Due to the continued impact of the COVID-10 pandemic, KMG's production facility will operate on a limited schedule until further notice effective Monday, May 4, 2020," the information hotline announced.

All Kia’s salaried employees were expected to return to work as scheduled this week.

While Kia’s sales dropped nearly 40% in April over last year, sales of the Kia Telluride, which is manufactured in Georgia, are expected to be strong going forward.