Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport: "Maintain Average Level of Apartment Supply in Seoul Until Next Year"

"Meaningful Measures to Prevent Electric Vehicle Fires Will Be Proposed"

Park Sang-woo, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, stated on the 21st that "the annual supply of apartments in Seoul will maintain the average level of this year and next year."

On the same day, Minister Park responded to a question from Kim Eun-hye, a member of the People Power Party, during the plenary session of the National Assembly Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee, asking "How many tens of thousands of households do you estimate as the appropriate annual new housing demand in Seoul?" He indicated that the supply of apartments in Seoul is not insufficient compared to the average year. He also said, "It is difficult to make a judgment about the situation after 2026 at this point."

Minister Park explained that the appropriate annual new housing supply in Seoul, including apartments and non-apartments, is estimated at 70,000 households. When Representative Kim asked, "Then why are housing prices rising?" Minister Park replied, "There is anxiety about mid- to long-term supply difficulties due to setbacks in non-apartment supply," adding, "Expectations of interest rate cuts are also playing a significant role."

Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Park Sang-woo is speaking at the plenary session of the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee held at the National Assembly on the 21st. At the plenary session, the revised Special Act on Jeonse Fraud, which passed the subcommittee by bipartisan agreement, will be processed. The revision includes measures such as the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) purchasing houses affected by jeonse fraud through auction and providing them as long-term public rental housing to the victims. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Regarding housing demand forecasts, he said, "Demand is quite variable, so it is difficult to make precise predictions mechanically and discuss based on numbers."

Regarding the Yoon Suk-yeol administration's goal of "2.7 million housing units supplied during the term" and the continuous announcement of additional supply measures, Minister Park said, "The 2.7 million units is not a 'measure' but a 'roadmap' announced when the government was launched," adding, "The recently announced supply measures should be understood as extraordinary measures to achieve the original goal."

Regarding the 'electric vehicle battery charge rate limit' being promoted by some local governments such as Seoul to prevent electric vehicle fires, he also said that meaningful measures would be presented after discussions with local governments. In response to a question from Kim Hee-jung, a member of the People Power Party, asking whether there is a correlation between battery charge rate and electric vehicle fire accidents, Minister Park replied, "It seems that causality has not been proven. Experts have different opinions, so it is difficult to confirm."

Regarding the recent recommendation by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries to limit the charge rate to 50% when loading electric vehicles, he stated, "It is effective to prevent accidents in advance by using battery management systems (BMS), etc., but prohibiting entry for vehicles charged beyond a certain level is really inappropriate."

Regarding the government's plan to expand above-ground electric vehicle charging facilities, he said, "It is necessary to carefully consider because insisting on above-ground only and no underground could cause various secondary problems when the cause of fires is not certain," adding, "We will closely examine this with relevant ministries including the fire department during the comprehensive plan establishment process scheduled for early next month."

Minister Park also revealed that he is considering measures to enforce actions against vehicles that refuse voluntary recalls by automobile manufacturers.