[Courtesy of Hanwha Q CELLS]
Boosted by a strong government campaign to go completely carbon-zero by 2050, South Korea's EV market is witnessing a boom like other countries. As of March 2022, there are 231,443 registered EVs, up 71.5 percent from 96,481 in 2020. However, the majority of EV chargers are installed in Seoul and its surrounding cities. There is one charger available for every three electric cars.
South Korea's rapidly growing EV charging service market is a free-for-all battleground for state electricity companies, local governments, and small-and-medium-sized enterprises. Commercial chargers that can easily be paid using digital payment systems and dedicated payment cards are commonly found at public places such as parks, shopping malls, apartment complexes, and transit terminals. Slow chargers charge about 220 won ($0.23) per kilowatt-hour.
Hanwha Q CELLS launched "Hanwha Motiev," an EV charging service brand, to provide one-stop services including consulting, infrastructure construction, business operation, and maintenance for charging service operators or those who wish to install chargers into their buildings. "Hanwha Motiev will provide high-quality solutions in the EV charging service market to create synergy with Hanwha Q CELLS' existing business models," an unnamed Hanwha Motiev official said in a statement on May 13.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
