South Korea records first-ever drop in number of fuel-powered vehicles

South Korea's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said on January 19 that the country recorded its first-ever decline in the total number of registered fuel-powered vehicles in 2023.

Hàn Quốc lần đầu tiên ghi nhận số lượng xe chạy bằng nhiên liệu giảm

A gas station in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. (Source: Yonhap)

Specifically, the total number of registered vehicles running on gasoline, diesel and liquefied petroleum gas in 2023 decreased by 85,000 vehicles (0.4%) compared to the previous year, to 23.647 million vehicles. This is the first time this statistic has decreased since the early 1960s, mainly due to the number of diesel and liquefied petroleum gas vehicles falling, although the number of registered vehicles running on gasoline increased by 2%.

The Korean government's policies to reduce pollution caused by vehicles are believed to be one of the reasons for the decline. Accordingly, it will remove old vehicles to reduce the risk of pollution, especially diesel vehicles; apply operating restrictions in Seoul and provide financial incentives for vehicle owners to remove high-emission vehicles.

In 2023, total vehicle registrations - including conventional and eco-friendly models - increased by 1.7% to 25.49 million units. Of these, eco-friendly vehicles accounted for 2.12 million units. In this category, hybrid vehicles accounted for about 72%, electric vehicles accounted for about 26% and hydrogen-powered vehicles and other vehicles accounted for the remaining 2%.

The eco-friendly segment grew to a total of 2.12 million registrations, up 33.4% year-on-year. This included 154,000 electric vehicles (up 39.5%), 46,000 hydrogen vehicles (up 15.6%) and 372,000 hybrid vehicles (up 31.7%).

The South Korean government has been gradually phasing out its support for hybrid vehicles. Subsidies for hybrid vehicle purchases ended in 2019, and subsidies for plug-in hybrid vehicles ended in early 2021. By 2025 or 2026, South Korea will phase out hybrid vehicles as an eco-friendly vehicle.

An official in the Korean electric vehicle industry said the electric vehicle industry is a promising industry, but EV makers are facing more challenges as many countries have begun to restrict or eliminate incentives for buyers of electric vehicles from foreign brands, including Korean ones.

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