Events Recap

National Assembly Forum on Accelerating Electric and Hydrogen Vehicle Adoption:
Evaluating the K-EV100 Initiative and Exploring Future Directions

On May 6, 2026, a National Assembly forum was held at the 5th Conference Room of the National Assembly Members' Office Building to discuss strategies for accelerating the adoption of electric and hydrogen vehicles. The forum, initiated with opening and closing remarks by Pan-gyu Park, Director of the Decarbonized Green Transport Innovation Division at the Ministry of Climate, Environment, and Energy, was designed to assess the current status of the domestic EV100 (K-EV100) program and identify ways to invigorate private-sector participation.

Director Park emphasized that the government will select 5 to 10 short-term priority tasks—such as corporate information disclosure—that can be executed within one year. He underscored the need to develop a fast-paced action plan based on proposals from the forum, urging the creation of success stories and the realization of tangible outcomes by linking these efforts to ESG indicators.

Key Presentations: Global Standards and Domestic Strategy

The presentation session featured insights into global trends and domestic policy directions:

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  Global EV100 Revisions & Korean Transition Strategy: Tae-han Kim, Executive Director of the Korea Sustainability Investing Forum (KoSIF), explained that the geopolitical conflict between the U.S. and Iran and the resulting oil price surges have reframed the EV transition. It is now recognized not just as environmental protection, but as a core strategy for energy security, long-term cost reduction, and achieving carbon neutrality.
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  Updated Global EV100 Criteria: The scope has been integrated to include logistics companies with medium-to-heavy commercial vehicles (previously EV100+) alongside general corporations (EV100), accelerating value-chain transitions. New vehicle procurement is restricted to BEVs or FCEVs (excluding plug-in hybrids). Korea is classified as a Tier 1 advanced market, similar to the U.S., EU, and U.K., with a target of 100% EV transition by 2030.
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  Strategic Recommendations: Director Kim emphasized that for corporate participation to increase, the perception must shift from viewing EV100 solely as a "subsidy-dependent cost" to recognizing it as a driver of global leadership and corporate reputation. He suggested linking EV transition to green finance, such as Sustainability-Linked Loans (SLLs), to ensure the smooth flow of transition capital. Furthermore, he highlighted the need for a circular ecosystem where large corporations require and support EV transitions among their suppliers, mirroring the success of RE100.
  
  
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  Domestic K-EV100 Activation Plan: Jae-seung Lee, Assistant Director at the Ministry of Climate, Environment, and Energy, reported that the participation conversion rate for the K-EV100 campaign, launched in 2021, remains in the single digits (around 7%). He cited the lack of flexibility in goal setting, insufficient incentives, and top-down implementation as the primary hurdles. To rectify this, the government plans to introduce differentiated goal guidelines tailored to specific industries (e.g., logistics, leasing) and provide tangible incentives, such as preferential policy interest rates and public procurement credits. Additionally, the government plans to launch a private-led "Domestic EV100 (K-EV100) Promotion Committee" to foster a culture of voluntary participation through public campaigns.
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Panel Discussions & Future Implementation

The designated and comprehensive discussion sessions yielded diverse perspectives on enhancing the effectiveness of K-EV100:

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  Consumer & Civil Society Perspective: Myeong Yoon (Consumers Korea) stressed that the EV transition requires objective information to assist consumer choices and argued that "just transition" must be guaranteed to prevent infrastructure bias toward new developments.
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  Industry & Finance Perspective:
• Gyeong-seon Yoon (Korea Automobile & Mobility Association) requested stronger, immediate incentives, such as expanding tax-deductible limits for corporate vehicle expenses and direct subsidies for participating firms.
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  Seon-mi Lee (UN Global Compact Korea Network) called for an information disclosure monitoring system, where annual transition speeds and reduction achievements are mandatory in sustainability reports.
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  Professor Kyu-jin Lee (Ajou University) suggested that from 2031, the government should signal a shift toward "normalization (regulation)," such as mandatory fleet conversion for corporate vehicles.
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  Choon-seung Yang (Executive Director, KoSIF) proposed redefining K-EV100 goals not as mere replacement counts, but as "practical greenhouse gas reduction outcomes" linked directly to transition finance benefits.
  
  
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The forum concluded with a consensus that the K-EV100 campaign must move beyond declarations toward becoming a sophisticated, incentive-based system. The upcoming Promotion Committee is expected to serve as the pivotal body in aligning these strategic tasks, including mandatory disclosure and industry-specific approaches, to accelerate the domestic electric and hydrogen vehicle ecosystem.

[Learn more about EV100]

• Inquiries: Nahyun Nam, Senior Researcher (nhn5505@kosif.org)