The Ministry of Environment (Minister Kim Sungwhan) announced that on 

the afternoon of July 24, Minister Kim Sungwhan would visit Hyundai Motor Company Jeonju plant (located in Wanju-gun, Jeollabuk-do) to inspect the production and distribution site of electric commercial vehicles and discuss ways to promote the distribution of domestically produced electric commercial vehicles with officials. 

Since beginning vehicle production in 1995, Hyundai Motor Company Jeonju plant launched its first electric bus (Elec City) in 2017. In May of last year (2024), it upgraded its production line to increase the annual planned production of electric buses by approximately 2.5 times (from 1,450 to 3,600 units), thereby strengthening its electric commercial vehicle production capacity. As the world’s largest electric commercial vehicle plant in a single location, it produces a total of 17 types of commercial vehicles, including electric and internal combustion buses and trucks. 

This site visit was arranged to both commend the efforts of on-site personnel and to listen to firsthand opinions on the challenges and efforts required to achieve the goal of distributing 4.5 million electric and hydrogen vehicles by 2030 without delay. It also aimed to discuss obstacles to the distribution of domestically produced electric commercial vehicles and ways to overcome them. 

As of the cumulative total in June 2025, approximately 845,000 electric and hydrogen vehicles have been distributed. While the demand for electric vehicles had somewhat slowed after 2023, it has shown signs of recovery this year*. Electric and hydrogen buses, which have significant environmental benefits, continue to grow steadily without a decline in demand**. Among the 12,830 electric buses distributed domestically from 2011 to June 2025, 59.6% were domestically produced and 40.4% were imported. 

* As of June 2025, approximately 95,000 electric and hydrogen vehicles have been distributed, marking an increase of about 44% compared to the same period in 2024 (66,000 vehicles).

** (Electric Buses) (2022) 2,074 units → (2023) 2,820 units → (2024) 3,611 units → (June 2025) 1,179 units

(Hydrogen Buses) (2022) 152 units → (2023) 368 units → (2024) 1,044 units → (June 2025) 524 units

Minister Kim Sungwhan stated, “The electric vehicle industry is not only a next-generation growth engine that will drive the national economy, but also a key force in achieving carbon neutrality in the transportation sector.” He added, “We will actively promote the distribution of domestically produced electric commercial vehicles by enhancing the efficiency of subsidy policies to strengthen the competitiveness of the domestic electric commercial vehicle industry.”