Ultra-fast electric vehicle (EV) charging stations are set to be installed throughout South Korea this year. An ultra-fast EV charger is able provide up to 350 kilowatts of electricity in just one hour. A normal EV can add about 150 kilometers of range with just five minutes of charging. These chargers are expected to greatly improve use of electric vehicles in South Korea.
According to the South Korean government and the industry on Monday, 190 ultra-fast chargers are expected to be installed at about 30 different places including highway rest stops and major spots within different cities. Hyundai Motor Company will install 120 chargers at about 20 places while the Ministry of Environment will install 70 chargers at about 30 places. Their ultra-fast chargers that are able to charge up to 350 kilowatts of electricity in just one hour are the latest model that has also been used by the United States and European countries recently.
Most of electric vehicles will have a range of about 400 kilometers with just 20 minutes of charging. Such speed is about three times faster than 100 kW fast chargers that are currently used the most.
However, because there are not many electric vehicles that are able to accept a 350 kW charge, the ultra-fast chargers’ power will be available in 350 kW and 150 kW.
Currently, Porsche’s “Taycan” is the only EV that is able to accept a 350 kW charge. Hyundai Motor Company’s “Ioniq 5”, Kia Motors “CV (project name)”, and Genesis Motor’s “JW (project name)” that will be released this first quarter will also be able to accept a 350 kW charge. Electric vehicles such as Audi’s “e-tron” and BMW’s “EQC” can accept up to 150 kW charge.
Hyundai Motor Company and the Ministry of Environment plan to operate their ultra-fast charging stations as open stations so that all electric vehicle models that correspond to their stations’ charging standards can use their stations.
“We plan to start installing ultra-fast chargers this year in order to improve use of EV charging infrastructures in South Korea.” said one official from the South Korean government. “We are going to discuss with a private company and set up ultra-fast charging stations at places that have great accessibility.”
Besides independent slow chargers that the Ministry of Environment have been installing mostly, the ministry also plans to supply other types of slow chargers such as outlet-type chargers, streetlight-type chargers, and kiosk-multi-type chargers. It plans to install more than 8,000 chargers mostly at places near residential areas and workplaces where people tend to stay at a same place for a long period of time. It will also install additional 1,600 100 kW fast chargers at places with great accessibility.
Staff Reporter Park, Taejoon | gaius@etnews.com