South Korea to require EV makers to disclose battery brands after fire, media report says
SEOUL, Aug 8 (Reuters) -South Korea plans to require electric vehicle (EV) makers to disclose the brand of batteries in cars due to safety concerns after a vehicle in an underground parking lot caught fire, causing extensive damage, a newspaper reported on Thursday.
The transport ministry intended to amend laws to require car companies to identify battery manufacturers, the Chosun Ilbo reported, citing an unnamed transport ministry official.
Automakers in South Korea currently need to disclose certain information about vehicles, including size and fuel efficiency, but only limited details on batteries, such as power capacity, and do not have to cite the manufacturers, the newspaper said.
The transport ministry declined to give an immediate comment on the report.
Last week, a Mercedes-Benz electric sedan with batteries made by Chinese company Farasis Energy 688567.SS caught fire in the underground garage of an apartment in the South Korean city of Incheon, according to media reports.
The blaze took more than eight hours to extinguish and damaged about 140 cars and 23 people were hospitaliseddue to smoke inhalation, Yonhap news agency said.
Mercedes-Benz Korea said in a statement it took the incident very seriously and planned to cooperate with authorities to determine the cause.
Farasis did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Seoul Metropolitan Fire & Disaster Headquarters in a report published in February said 1,399 fires occurred in underground parking lots in South Korea between 2013 and 2022 with 43.7% attributed to vehicles. It said electrical sources accounted for 53% of car fires in underground garages.
"A series of EV fires occurring in underground parking lots have been linked to growing consumer distrust of EVs, which could prolong the current EV downturn," said Esther Yim, an analyst at Samsung Securities, adding that car and battery makers needed to come up with measures to reassure consumers.
Last month, Hyundai Motor 005380.KS said it would expand hybrid line-ups as demand for EVs eases globally.
Meanwhile, battery maker LG Energy Solution 373220.KS, whose customers include Tesla TSLA.O, General Motors GM.N and Hyundai Motor among others, cut its annual sales target on a slowdown in global EV demand.
Reporting by Heekyong Yang
Editing by Ed Davies
Related Assets
Latest News
Disclaimer: The XM Group entities provide execution-only service and access to our Online Trading Facility, permitting a person to view and/or use the content available on or via the website, is not intended to change or expand on this, nor does it change or expand on this. Such access and use are always subject to: (i) Terms and Conditions; (ii) Risk Warnings; and (iii) Full Disclaimer. Such content is therefore provided as no more than general information. Particularly, please be aware that the contents of our Online Trading Facility are neither a solicitation, nor an offer to enter any transactions on the financial markets. Trading on any financial market involves a significant level of risk to your capital.
All material published on our Online Trading Facility is intended for educational/informational purposes only, and does not contain – nor should it be considered as containing – financial, investment tax or trading advice and recommendations; or a record of our trading prices; or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instruments; or unsolicited financial promotions to you.
Any third-party content, as well as content prepared by XM, such as: opinions, news, research, analyses, prices and other information or links to third-party sites contained on this website are provided on an “as-is” basis, as general market commentary, and do not constitute investment advice. To the extent that any content is construed as investment research, you must note and accept that the content was not intended to and has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such, it would be considered as marketing communication under the relevant laws and regulations. Please ensure that you have read and understood our Notification on Non-Independent Investment. Research and Risk Warning concerning the foregoing information, which can be accessed here.
