Hyundai Motor Group said on the 7th that it signed a business agreement with the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment and the Korea Environment Corporation (K-eco) to build a domestic plug and charge (PnC) authentication framework for electric vehicles, and agreed to transfer PnC authentication technology and authority free of charge.
PnC is an international standard technology in which all steps—member authentication, charging and payment—are carried out automatically just by connecting the charging cable to an electric vehicle. Unlike ordinary charging, which requires a membership card or a credit card, it simplifies the service by applying encrypted authentication between the car and the charger.
However, PnC authentication methods have differed among EV charger manufacturers and operators, causing customer inconvenience and making the technology harder to spread. The agreement was concluded to expand Hyundai Motor Group's PnC technology to resolve this.
Under the agreement, Hyundai Motor Group will transfer, free of charge, the PnC certificates and issuance authority it has operated since 2021 to the ministry. The Korea Environment Corporation (K-eco), with support from the ministry, will build a government-integrated authentication system so anyone can use the authentication framework and technology.
Through this, Hyundai Motor, Kia and Genesis—as well as domestic and imported EV customers with the technology and various charging operators—will be able to use standardized PnC technology.
The signing ceremony was held the day before (on the 6th) at the Lucky Conference in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. Attendees included Jeong Kyu-won, executive director and head of EV Infrastructure Strategy at Hyundai Motor Group; Park Pan-gyu, head of the Decarbonized Green Transport Innovation Division at the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment; and Hong Cheol-gyu, head of the Eco-friendly Mobility Division at the Korea Environment Corporation (K-eco), among other officials.
A Hyundai Motor Group official said, "We are transferring the technology free of charge so that any electric-vehicle customer in Korea can enjoy a more convenient charging experience," and added, "Based on Hyundai Motor Group's technology, we will do our best so Korea can have world-class EV infrastructure."