‘EV Trend Korea’, an eco-friendly mobility exhibition, was held at COEX in Seoul for three days from the 15th to the 17th. Celebrating its 3th year this year, EV Trend Korea is the only electric vehicle expo in Seoul held by the government to expand the supply of electric vehicles in the private sector and form a new electric vehicle culture.
In this ‘EV Trend Korea’, representative companies by sector such as finished vehicles and commercial vehicles (Hyundai Motors, Kia, Volvo Trucks, etc.), small mobility (Gen Station, Zentropy, etc.), chargers and infrastructure (Cabi, Modern Tech, SS Chargers) participated, A variety of techniques were demonstrated.
EVAR, a domestic charger company, drew attention by unveiling the world’s first charger that detects fire in electric vehicles at ‘EV Trend Korea 2023’. Accordingly, AVING News met with EVAR CEO Hoon Lee at the “EV Trend Korea 2023” site and conducted an interview.
Q. Aving News: I am curious about the company introduction and the background of developing the cart-type mobile charger.
A. CEO Hoon Lee: EVAR is a start-up specializing in electric vehicle charging solutions that was spun off from Samsung Electronics in 2018, and is developing mobile charging solutions and autonomous robot charging solutions.
In Korea, there are many shared parking lots in apartments, but it is not easy to designate them as exclusive parking areas for electric vehicles. After thinking about how to build a charging infrastructure smoothly even under these constraints, the solution was developed.
EVAR has a goal to create a solution that basically attaches wheels to a large auxiliary battery to find an electric vehicle in any parking lot and charge it while moving.
Filming and production – AVING NEWS
Q. Aving News: Participation in CES 1 held in Las Vegas, USA in January achieved an amazing achievement of winning 2023 innovation awards.
A. Lee Hoon, CEO: As far as I know, it was the first in the world to receive the CES Innovation Award for two consecutive years in the charging solution industry. As the news of the award is widely known at home and abroad, inquiries about the supply of charging solutions are continuing in line. As a result, we are preparing to speed up our overseas expansion.
In CES 2023, with the support of the Korea Institute of Startup & Entrepreneurship Development, it participated as a K-STARTUP integrated pavilion. Since we did not set up a separate booth, there were no tangible results such as consultation contracts at the site.
Rather, as the company’s awareness increased with news such as winning the Innovation Award after the exhibition, we received a lot of inquiries and received a lot of help in the sales area.
Q. Aving News: The biggest problem with domestic electric vehicle charging is that there is a huge wall of insufficient charging infrastructure and regulatory restrictions. This should be done by the relevant government department first, but organic solidarity with charging-related companies seems important. What are some realistic problems and plans from the perspective of the company (EVA)?
A. Lee Hoon, CEO: Regulations related to domestic electric vehicle charging or infrastructure expansion are not areas that companies can do alone, and the government and companies should work together organically.
Electric cars are spreading at a very rapid pace, and I heard many stories that they decided to purchase an electric car after seeing a charger installed in the residential area where they live or in the company parking lot. To that extent, it is a reality that infrastructure must be preemptively supplied in order to spread electric vehicles.
However, the problem is that the number of chargers that can be installed in buildings or apartment parking lots is limited. This is because the electric capacity of each apartment or building is already determined at the construction stage, so if the capacity is exceeded, a lot of cost is incurred.
According to the research results, it is predicted that from 2030, power depletion will occur in buildings and apartments in earnest. Accordingly, the company has installed a power load automatic dispensing function called ‘load balancing’, which enables multiple chargers to use efficiently with limited power resources, and is distributing the largest amount in the world so far.
By utilizing this solution well, it is expected that it will be possible to supply sufficient charging infrastructure as well as worry about power depletion. However, regarding the subsidy policy of the Ministry of Environment, subsidies for power sharing solutions are very small. It is hoped that policy support will be provided to improve these areas and activate the supply of power sharing infrastructure.
Q. AVING News: There is also a spatial problem. How are you diagnosing this?
A. Lee Hoon, CEO: Since it was legislated last year, it is mandatory to secure 2% or 5% of the parking area as an electric vehicle charging facility. In the early days, there were concerns that there would be a sense of rejection, but now a consensus is forming that the electric car era will become mainstream in the long term.
Riding on this trend of the times, there are also places that will install more electric vehicle charging infrastructure than legal standards. Ultimately, I think we need to go in the direction where internal combustion locomotives and electric vehicles can coexist without the need to distinguish between parking surfaces by building facilities that enable charging on all parking surfaces.
Q. Aving News: Fire accidents are also increasing along with the increase in the supply of electric vehicles. Electric vehicle charging systems are also not free from safety issues. Above all, since it is a device used in a residential space, it is important to ensure that it is not placed in a safety blind spot. What safety technologies are applied to Eva’s charging system?
A. Hoon Lee, CEO: As electric vehicle fire incidents have continued recently, the anxiety of residents of apartments where many electric vehicle chargers are installed is growing. Accordingly, the company also agonized over how to respond from the charger’s point of view if a fire breaks out in an electric vehicle.
If a fire incident occurs in an electric car parked in front of a charging station for any reason, the first device to know the situation is the charger installed on site. The charger is equipped with a sensor that can detect a fire, and in the event of a fire situation, it was envisioned to build a system that can report to the relevant authorities or contact the control center faster than anyone else. As a result, it was judged that if the initial response is quick, it can contribute to minimizing damage.
With this concept, it was the first in the world to mount a sensor that detects when a fire breaks out in the vehicle or space in front of the charger. In the event of a fire, charging is stopped immediately, an alarm is sent to the control center connected to the server, and a function that can be reported to the local fire department if necessary has been implemented. We would like to help you build a charging station with a little more peace of mind.
Q. Aving News: Recently, the United States has been adhering to the buy-America policy and the proposal of support laws such as semiconductors and IRAs to protect itself. As a result, not only domestic conglomerates, but also small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and startups are experiencing great difficulties. EVAR, which is actively engaged in overseas activities, is also bound to be hit, but how is it coping?
A. Representative Lee Hoon: The most important point of the related legislation is that if you want to receive subsidies, you must establish a local factory to manufacture. Startups, like large corporations, have restrictions and limitations in establishing and operating local factories.
Currently, the company is approaching in a way that jointly responds to this environment by allying or partnering with startups or local companies. Fortunately, a consensus has been formed with some companies, and I think we will be able to deliver related news soon.
Q. Aving News: I know that you met with President Yoon Seok-yeol in February and suggested deregulation. I wonder if anything has actually changed.
A. CEO Hoon Lee: Most of our charging solutions, which received the CES Innovation Award for two consecutive years, were not properly commercialized in Korea due to large and small regulations. Coincidentally, a meeting between the company that won the CES Innovation Award and President Seok-Yeol Yoon was held, and although the products made by the company have won awards at leading overseas exhibitions, they were able to convey the difficult situation that there are restrictions on commercialization in Korea.
On the spot, there was an order to immediately identify the difficulties of the companies and provide support to the relevant ministries, and in fact, they contacted me the very next day. So, it is hoped that the related regulations will be resolved quickly this time.
Q. Aving News: Eva’s busy activities are expected this year as well. Do you have any plans?
A. Lee Hoon, CEO: This year, the company is making it a year to secure a bridgehead to advance into overseas markets in earnest. In line with the fast-growing charging market, we are also preparing follow-up investment rounds to grow even faster. We plan to work hard to grow faster and spread the innovation of charging infrastructure we are pursuing not only in Korea but also around the world.
In addition, the company recently participated in a start-up pitching contest hosted by the US Embassy and was selected as the representative of Korea. As a representative Korean company, we participated in the Global Startup Pitching Conference hosted by the US government in Washington in May. I understand that Korean companies have been ranked first in the conference for two consecutive years, and this year we will work hard to return with good results for the third consecutive year.
Meanwhile, EV Trend Korea is an eco-friendly automobile exhibition that shares global trends and launches of new electric cars at home and abroad. In this exhibition, finished car companies, charging manufacturers, and infrastructure companies participated, and various events such as electric vehicle-themed seminars, vehicle test drives, and awards were held.
→ Go to EV Trend Korea 2023 News Special Page
