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South Korean officials convened to examine electric vehicle safety and whether car manufacturers should be required to disclose battery names, following growing customer concern over an EV fire in an underground garage that severely destroyed an apartment building.
The fire, which appeared to start spontaneously in a Mercedes-Benz EV parked below a residential building, took eight hours to extinguish, burning and damaging approximately 140 automobiles and prompting some people to seek refuge.
The conference is being led by the country’s vice environment minister, and it will be attended by the transport and industry ministries, as well as the national fire agency, according to an official.
The government is expected to unveil new restrictions soon.
According to media sources, officials from the transport ministry will meet with automakers such as Hyundai Motor Group, Mercedes-Benz Korea, and Volkswagen Group Korea to debate the idea of disclosing the brands of batteries used in electric vehicles.
The ministry did not immediately comment on the reports. Hyundai Motor Group, Mercedes-Benz Korea, and Volkswagen Group Korea did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Images in the media of dozens of burnt cars with only their metal frames left in the parking lot fire have fueled consumer concerns about EVs, which are likely amplified by the fact that so many people in South Korea live in flats, which frequently have parking lots below.
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