French Company Makes Attempt at Exhaust Gas Reduction in Korea

The Gyeonggi Provincial Government signed an investment agreement with Faurecia on Dec. 7. The purpose of the agreement is to set up an R&D institute in Korea in order to work on a technique for reducing NOx emissions from automobiles by up to 80 percent with 25 Korean companies which also includes the Hyundai Motor Group.

The signing ceremony was attended by Gyeonggi Provincial governor Nam Kyung-pil, Faurecia Korea head Lee Seung-kyu, Yongin City mayor Jeong Chan-min and Frederic Abadie, who is in charge of Faurecia’s research institutes in Asia.

Faurecia is the world’s sixth-largest auto parts supplier with annual sales of 22 trillion won. The French company is currently running six corporations, 13 manufacturing facilities and three research institutes in Korea.

According to the agreement, Faurecia is to invest US$68 million in the city to integrate multiple research centers in Korea and develop technique. The company has ammonia storage facilities and delivery systems for exhaust gas reduction and fuel efficiency improvement. Its technique is characterized by maximizing exhaust gas reduction by replacing urea water solution with a gaseous one.

Faurecia’s efforts for the commercialization of this technique have no precedence in the world. Once commercialized, it is to be incorporated into Hyundai and Kia vehicles.