[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Hyowon] The domestic eco-friendly vehicle industry has entered a boom period, recording the largest export volume ever. The popularization of eco-friendly vehicles such as electric and hydrogen cars is accelerating.
On the 16th, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced the 'August 2022 Automobile Industry Trends.' According to the ministry, last month’s eco-friendly vehicle export volume was 40,215 units, amounting to 1.22 billion dollars. This represents a 47.0% and 45.7% increase respectively compared to the same month last year, maintaining a growth trend for 20 consecutive months.
As the era of eco-friendly vehicles fully arrives, related parts manufacturers are gaining attention. Parts for electric and hydrogen vehicles have higher added value compared to general vehicle parts.
At the center of beneficiary companies is Newintec, a specialist in film capacitors (accumulators). Newintec produces deposition films, the raw material for capacitors used in home appliances, industrial capacitors, and film capacitors. It is the only company in Korea mass-producing capacitors for 800-volt charging systems.
Thanks to the globally expanding electric vehicle market, Newintec’s sales volume of capacitors for eco-friendly vehicles is rapidly increasing. Newintec’s vehicle capacitors (DC-Link) are exclusively supplied to Hyundai Motor Company and Kia’s electric vehicle dedicated platform (E-GMP).
Among electric vehicles exported from Korea from January to July, the top two cumulative sales were Kia’s ‘EV6’ and Hyundai Motor’s ‘Ioniq 5.’ Both are newly launched electric vehicles based on Hyundai Motor Group’s E-GMP platform equipped with 800-volt charging systems.
Electric vehicle sales by Hyundai Motor Company and Kia are expected to continue strong in the second half of the year. Last month, Hyundai’s ‘Ioniq 6’ set a record for the highest number of pre-orders on the first day. Kia’s high-performance electric vehicle ‘EV6 GT’ is also accelerating its market entry ahead of its launch.
A Newintec official stated, “Despite consumption contraction due to inflation, demand for eco-friendly vehicles continues to exceed supply because of the semiconductor shortage. The contract volume for vehicle capacitors secured for next year is 1.28 million units, so sales are expected to continue increasing.”
In July, Newintec completed a new factory in Gunsan to prepare for the surging demand for capacitors. Once fully operational, Newintec’s production capacity (CAPA) is expected to increase from the current 900,000 units to 1.2 million units within the year.
Meanwhile, prices of major raw materials for film capacitors, such as synthetic resin and international copper prices, are stabilizing. This second half of the year is expected to be a momentum for performance recovery for Newintec, which had been struggling with soaring raw material costs.
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