Visitors look around an LG Energy Solution booth at the InterBattery 2021 at COEX in Seoul on June 9, 2021. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, June 30 (Korea Bizwire) — The government plans to set up a series of centers to facilitate the systematic collection and storage of depleted electric vehicle (EV) batteries as well as to supply them more effectively to the private sector.
The Ministry of Environment announced that a partial revision of the enforcement ordinance of the Act on Resource Circulation of Electrical and Electronic Equipment and Vehicles passed at a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
Under the revision that will take effect from July 6, the ministry will be responsible for the development of base collection centers for future waste resources aimed at promoting the collection, storage and recycling of waste batteries.
The base collection centers will be managed by the Korea Environment Corporation.
The ministry plans to spend 17.1 billion won (US$15.1 million) to install the collection centers in four regions as part of efforts to better cope with the increase in the number of exhausted batteries resulting from the ever-rising prevalence of EVs.
The base centers will serve as a distribution foundation for the future source recycling system in which depleted batteries that EV owners return to the government will then be sold to the private sector after assessing the residual value such as remaining capacity and life.
Construction of the base centers is underway, and is expected to be completed in August. After undergoing a trial operation, the collection centers are expected to see their official launch in 2022, when sales to the private sector will become possible.
J. S. Shin (js_shin@koreabizwire.com)
