[2020 National Audit] "17 Electric Vehicle Fast Chargers by Ministry of Environment Show '0' Usage in 1 Year"

55 Chargers That Don't Even Charge 1kWh a Day

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] There have been criticisms that the electric vehicle fast chargers installed by the Ministry of Environment are not functioning properly. In particular, it was found that 17 chargers, each costing 40 million KRW, were not used at all for a year.

According to the 'Public Fast Charger Usage History Information' submitted by Jang Cheolmin, a member of the National Assembly's Environment and Labor Committee from the Democratic Party of Korea, to the Ministry of Environment and the Korea Environment Corporation on the 19th, there are a total of 2,896 public fast chargers installed and operated nationwide by the Ministry of Environment.

Among them, 1,164 chargers (40.1%) had an average daily usage of less than one charge this year.

Based on the past year, 55 chargers did not charge even 1 kWh per day. Among these, 17 chargers were not used at all.

The public fast chargers installed and operated by the Ministry of Environment and the Korea Environment Corporation are most densely installed in Gyeongsangbuk-do and Gyeonggi-do, with 345 units (11.9%) each.

In Seoul, 193 chargers (6.7%) are installed, which is considered insufficient given that Seoul's population accounts for 18.8% of the total population.

On the other hand, Gangwon-do has 288 chargers (9.9%), which is a large number compared to its population ratio of 2.97%. Jeju-do, where electric vehicle adoption and usage are most active, has a total of 205 chargers (7.1%) installed.

Regarding usage frequency, public fast chargers nationwide were used an average of 2.1 times per day this year.

Chargers used less than once per day numbered 1,164 (40.1%), among which 17 were never used. Only 271 chargers (9.4%) out of the total 2,896 were used more than five times per day.

The most frequently used charger is located at the parking lot of Hallim-eup Gymnasium in Jeju, with 15.6 uses per day.

Excluding Jeju, the charger at Chungju Rest Area (Yangpyeong direction) in Chungbuk Chungju was the most used.

Among the top 20 most used chargers, 12 are in Jeju this year, 7 are at highway rest areas, and 1 is located in Gwanak-gu, Seoul (Seoul National University entrance). Last year, all were located in Jeju.

Over the past year, the average daily charging amount per charger was 37.81 kWh, with the Yeoju Rest Area (Incheon direction) charger in Yeoju, Gyeonggi-do recording the highest daily charging amount of 253.28 kWh.

In contrast, the Lotte Mart Guro branch in Guro-gu, Seoul recorded a charging amount of 0.005 kWh.

Assemblyman Jang pointed out, "Public fast chargers should be deployed based on precise research on vehicle movement routes and demand, but the current results show the limitations of a supply-centered policy."

He argued, "Fast chargers should be installed at key points of the national road network such as Daejeon IC, and dedicated parking and charging zones for eco-friendly vehicles should be newly established at these locations."