The Ministry of Environment (Minister Han Wha-jin) announced that it will sign a written business agreement on July 15 with South Jeolla Province (Governor Kim Young-rok) and Naju City (Mayor Yoon Byung-tae) to establish an integrated environmental information center for the carbon neutrality of the entire lifecycle of electric vehicles.

Recently, major advanced countries, including European Union (EU) member countries, have been strengthening environmental regulations by mandating the recycling of critical minerals contained in batteries and measuring the carbon emissions that occur throughout the entire lifecycle of electric vehicle manufacturing, from raw material extraction to disposal. 

In response, the Ministry of Environment has promoted the establishment of the center to address international environmental regulations and support the creation of an ecosystem for the used battery industry.

The center will collect and analyze information on electric vehicle battery performance and specifications, electric vehicle certification and subsidy calculations, and electric vehicle charging. It will also implement guidelines for calculating the carbon footprint of electric vehicles in the system, allowing companies to easily obtain carbon footprint information for each manufacturing process of electric vehicles.

In addition, a recycled material production certification system will be established to collect and analyze information such as the characteristics, production volume, and vendors of recycled materials when batteries from scrapped electric vehicles are reused. This will be linked to a battery lifecycle management system that manages and shares information from battery manufacturing to electric vehicle operation and scrapping, the trading and distribution of used batteries, and the remanufacturing, reuse, and recycling of used batteries.

Once the center is established, it will be able to secure information on the condition of electric vehicle batteries and their charging history, which can be used to prevent battery safety incidents such as fires. Export companies can utilize battery supply chain information and the carbon footprint system to respond to trade regulations, which is expected to help enhance the overall competitiveness of the battery industry in our country.

The center is scheduled to be established within the Innovative Industrial Complex in Naju, South Jeolla Province, on a site covering 6,632㎡, with the opening aimed for 2027. Currently, the architectural design for the center and the design of the information systems are underway. The Ministry of Environment will oversee the overall tasks related to the establishment of the center, including the formulation of business plans and securing budgets, while South Jeolla Province and Naju City will provide the site for the center and plan to attract related companies dealing with used batteries to the vicinity.

Yoo Seung-gwang, Director General of the Resources Circulation Bureau at the Ministry of Environment, stated, “The establishment of the Integrated Environmental Information Center for the carbon neutrality of the entire lifecycle of electric vehicles is the first step towards realizing a circular economy for batteries.” He added, “We will do our utmost to respond to global electric vehicle and battery environmental regulations in cooperation with relevant ministries.”