Socar and LG Electronics Join Forces to Strengthen Smart Charging Infrastructure for Electric Vehicles

On the 8th, Namgung Ho, Head of Business at Socar (CBO, left), and Kim Dongwook, Head of B2B Advanced Technology Center at LG Electronics CTO Division, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and took a commemorative photo. Photo by Socar

Socar announced on the 11th that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with LG Electronics to operate smart charging stations.

Through this agreement, both companies will collaborate on ▲operating unmanned smart charging stations ▲developing a protocol for linking FMS (Fleet Management System) and CSMS (Charging Station Management System) ▲building an AI-based smart charging operation system.

Initially, they plan to establish and expand smart charging infrastructure centered around the Jeju region. Jeju, which has the highest proportion of renewable energy and active electric vehicle adoption in Korea, is home to the largest single Socar zone with the biggest Socar station. They plan to introduce 30 smart chargers in Jeju and utilize them for the car-sharing service of about 70 Socar electric vehicles currently operated at Socar stations.

Additionally, they will improve energy efficiency by adjusting the charging speed of electric vehicles according to changes in power demand through V1G (unidirectional charging control). By October 2025, they plan to build 200 chargers capable of V2G (bidirectional charging control) at Socar stations in Jeju and actively promote electric vehicle charging and energy convergence projects using renewable energy.

To operate AI-based energy convergence stations, development of the FMS and CSMS linkage protocol will also commence. By developing the linkage protocol, vehicles and charging stations can exchange data in real time and integrate it into AI models to optimize charging time and costs, enabling more stable and efficient operation of charging stations.

Namgung Ho, Chief Business Officer (CBO) of Socar, stated, "We will continuously expand electric vehicle operations and accelerate the transition to eco-friendly mobility through cooperation with various partners."

Meanwhile, since introducing its first electric vehicle in 2016, Socar has continuously expanded its operation scale and currently operates about 900 electric vehicles nationwide as of last month. It also offers convenience services and technical projects such as the 'Charging Guarantee' product, which guarantees a battery charge of over 70% at rental, and the 'Carbon Neutral Practice Point System,' which provides incentives based on electric vehicle driving distance.