South Korea imposes new EV charging restrictions following fire. Check details
Following the recent electric vehicle (EV) catching fire, South Korean government officials have initiated new regulations aimed at reducing the likelihood of similar occurrences. According to a local South Korean news outlet, Korea JoongAng Daily, The Seoul Metropolitan Government said that electric vehicles charged above 90 per cent will be banned from entering underground car parks.
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Furthermore, public EV fast-charging stations in the capital will be set to charge at 80 per cent. These cuts will be in place by the end of September.These rules were made in light of an EV fire caught by a Mercedes-Benz EQE on August 1, 2024 that damaged at least one apartment block and hundreds of cars. The CCTV footage has captured that the electric sedan was parked and had white smoke, likely from its floor-mounted battery. Moments later, it exploded, and the fire extended toward the other cars nearby.
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Excessive charging not the sole culprit
Korea JoongAng Daily stated that such limitations had further been lambasted as a "stop-gap rule that is impractical and can't fundamentally resolve the issue." Professor Yoon Won-Sub, who heads a battery-research centre in a South Korean university, shared his disbelief that these kinds of restrictions would work in the right manner.
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It is not excessive charging that leads to the ignition of lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles, argues Professor Yoon. He said EVs are designed not to be charged fully, even when the dashboard reads 100 per cent. That would mean the purported link between high levels of charging and increased fire risk is actually a myth.
Additional guidelines forthcoming
Alongside the charging curbs, further guidelines are due to be announced by South Korean officials in early September, which might force carmakers to make battery manufacturers' details public and more limits on charging, according to sources. Professor Yoon termed these measures a "witch hunt" and called for a more holistic solution to the crisis, expert-led.
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