Busan City Expands Distribution of Electric Motorcycle Battery 'Swappable Charging Stations'

Busan City-AIMS-KT, 70 Charging Stations

Battery Swap for Discharged Electric Motorcycles↔Fully Charged

Convenience Store-Based, User-Friendly Charging Infrastructure Established

Busan City, battery charging service specialist company AIMS, and digital platform company KT have been selected for the Ministry of Environment’s ‘2023 Regional Zero-Emission Vehicle Transition Brand Project’ and will supply 70 ‘Electric Two-Wheeler Battery Swap Charging Stations’ within this year.

Battery Swap Charging Station for Electric Two-Wheelers.

The ‘Electric Two-Wheeler Battery Swap Charging Station’ is a facility where depleted electric motorcycle batteries can be exchanged for fully charged ones. The depleted batteries are charged at this facility and made available for the next user.

So far, the city has been promoting the transition to eco-friendly vehicles, including electric two-wheelers, and the expansion of charging infrastructure with the goals of ‘Realizing the Values of Expo 2030 Busan’ and ‘Becoming a Leading Carbon Neutral City by 2050.’

This project aims to promote the transition from internal combustion engine two-wheelers, including those used for delivery, to electric two-wheelers by expanding the supply of ‘Electric Two-Wheeler Battery Swap Charging Stations’ within the city area, thereby preventing noise pollution and improving urban air quality.

With this project selection, AIMS will install an additional 70 stations at convenient facilities such as convenience stores with good accessibility and provide battery charging services with improved driving range and safety to electric two-wheeler users. AIMS has already installed about 40 electric two-wheeler battery swap charging stations within the city and provides battery rental and charging services.

A battery "exchange-type charging station" installed in convenience facilities with good accessibility, such as convenience stores.

KT supports the operation of the ‘Battery Management System’ that collects location information and battery status of electric two-wheelers through IoT devices attached to the batteries, transmits the data to servers, and enables integrated control via an app developed by AIMS.

Furthermore, Busan City will actively provide administrative support to expand the electric two-wheeler charging platform essential for the supply of electric two-wheelers.

In response to the continuous issues of exhaust emissions and noise pollution caused by the rapid increase in two-wheeler demand and the spread of delivery culture due to COVID-19, the city expects that establishing charging infrastructure at conveniently accessible facilities (convenience stores) will resolve existing problems of electric two-wheelers such as short driving range compared to long charging times and lack of battery management systems, thereby promoting the transition from internal combustion engine two-wheelers to electric two-wheelers.

Lee Geun-hee, Director of the Environmental Policy Office of Busan City, said, “By expanding the supply of electric two-wheeler battery swap charging stations, we plan to build infrastructure that allows Busan citizens to easily charge electric two-wheelers anywhere,” adding, “Through this, we will lower the entry barriers to using electric two-wheelers and promote the transition from internal combustion engine two-wheelers to electric two-wheelers.”