BMW is aggressively entering the Korean electric vehicle market with the establishment of electric vehicle charging infrastructure as a key strategy.
According to BMW Korea on Oct. 14, the German automaker has installed 920 EV charging stations in Korea, starting with 120 EV chargers at E-Mart branches nationwide in 2014. The company plans to increase the number to 1,100 by the end of the year. By the end of the year, the share of BMW’s EV chargers in Korea will stand 41 percent.
BMW will go further and install an additional 1,000 chargers in 2024 alone. In particular, the chargers will be open to every electric vehicle so that anyone with an electric vehicle can use them. This will bring the total number of EV chargers in Korea to 2,100, accounting for more than 50 percent of Korea’s EV charging infrastructure by the end of next year, the company expects.
In order to successfully complete this project, BMW has forged a partnership with LG Electronics and GS Energy. LG Electronics will develop and produce 350 kilowatt (kW) and 200 kW fast chargers, while GS Energy will supply charging sites and provide services.
Hyundai Motor Group, the largest automaker in Korea, plans to install a total of 2,500 EV chargers in the country by 2025, including fast charging stations (E-pits). When considering this fact, BMW’s plan to build its own charging infrastructure is overwhelming for a single imported car brand.
According to the Korean Ministry of Environment, the number of chargers per EV was 0.5 in Korea in 2020. By 2025, it is expected to stand at 0.4 per EV. Previously, one single charger could power only two EVs on average, but given the current trend of widespread EV adoption, three EVs will be connected to one single charger in 2025.
One of the reasons consumers are reluctant to buy an EV is the inconvenience of charging. This makes it urgent for automakers to build charging infrastructure in order to promote EV sales. Against this backdrop, BMW has chosen to build charging infrastructure as a key pillar of its strategy for the Korean EV market.
BMW is the only member of the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association (KAIDA) that receives a government subsidy for charging infrastructure. The subsidy is paid only to manufacturers that have installed 100 or more fast chargers over the last three years.