On September 9, South Korea’s Ministry of Transportation (MoT) said that the legislative notice for amendments to the implementing regulations of the Motor Vehicle Administration Act (MVA) will be published for 40 days starting from September 10th and ending on October 21st, according to foreign media reports.
The new legislation aims to ensure that the public enjoys the right to know about the safety of electric vehicles, the South Korean Ministry of Transportation said, adding that the department is committed to improving relevant systems and regulations to further enhance the safety of electric vehicles.
On Sept. 6, the South Korean government said the EV battery certification system, which was set to take effect in February next year, will begin a trial run in October this year, and introduced a series of measures to prevent EVs from catching fire.
Under the Korean government’s EV fire safety management measures, domestic and foreign car brands will need to be subject to the Korean authorities’ EV battery certification requirements. In addition, the South Korean government will publish information on battery manufacturers, battery types and key materials for all electric vehicles sold in the country.
The Korean government will also expand the scope of the EV battery checklist and expand the EV battery inspection infrastructure nationwide. The checklist currently only evaluates the high-voltage insulation of batteries, and in the future it will add checks for more information such as battery voltage, battery temperature and state of charge, as well as cumulative charging or discharging records.
The Korean government has decided to increase the accountability of EV manufacturers and charging operators in order to strengthen consumer protection from EV fire damage. The Korean government will promote the implementation of mandatory product liability insurance. Starting next year, EV manufacturers without product liability insurance will not be able to receive EV subsidies. Charging operators will be required to purchase no-fault liability insurance to compensate for damages caused by EV fires.
In addition, the Korean government has pledged to improve battery management systems (BMS) to better detect fire risks and will develop battery risk standards for BMS by the end of this year to effectively respond to EV fires.
The Korean government will also launch a pilot program in the first half of next year: targeting EVs whose owners have agreed to provide BMS information to authorities, to equip EVs with the ability to automatically notify firefighters in high-risk situations.
Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors will install these features in older EVs that are not equipped with BMS safety features and provide free updates.
In addition, the Korean government will provide more smart control chargers, from 20,000 this year to 71,000 next year. These chargers can act as a double security by controlling charging in coordination with the BMS.
The Korean government also plans to install sprinklers that prevent the spread of fires in underground parking lots in all new buildings to minimize the damage caused by EV fires. Existing buildings that already have sprinklers installed will undergo enhanced regular inspections and performance improvements, including replacement of fire detectors and sprinkler heads.
In the long term, the Korean government will work to reduce the risk of EV battery fires through the development of diaphragm stability additives, battery pack fire suppression technology and the advancement of solid-state battery technology. Solid-state batteries can withstand higher temperatures and have greater thermal stability, making them a safer alternative to the widely used lithium-ion batteries.