Hyundai Motor Group announced recently that it will support the rollout of the new wave of all-electric cars in South Korea with the installation of its E-pit ultra-fast charging network.
The plan is to install 800V fast chargers that will be able to recharge batteries to 80% in as low as 18 minutes, and provide 100 km (62 miles) of range in just 5 minutes of charging.
The primary objective is of course to enable drivers of the all-new Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6 to take long-distance trips.
The initial stage is to build 20 stations with a total of 120 stalls:
- 12 stations with a total of 72 stalls at highway rest stops (around mid-April)
- 8 stations with a total of 48 stalls in urban centers (later this year)
The great news is that the chargers will offer the Plug & Charge feature (the automatic authentication, charging and payment). Because Hyundai, Kia and Genesis brands are part of the Hyundai Motor Group, we guess that it will work quite seamlessly.
The network will be available for all EVs compatible with the CCS Combo 1 DC fast charging standard (the same as in the U.S.).
Hyundai Motor Group has decided to make the stations a little bit more premium than we normally see - so there will be a canopy.
Because Hyundai Motor Group is the largest player in South Korea, it's not strange that the company is building its own ultra-fast charging network. No one else will do it.
Tesla already has its own Supercharging network, but it's not available for CCS1 cars from different manufacturers.
Once Hyundai Motor Group expands the network, other manufacturers with smaller share in the market will probably simply join the E-pit.
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