Combo market share of Korea-US-Europe standard specifications overtakes Japan's CHAdeMO
Nissan, a key player in CHAdeMO distribution, switches to Combo as a fast charging standard

While Japan's CHAdeMO's market share is stagnating, a report has come out that CCS (hereinafter referred to as Combo), the rapid charging standard of Korea, the United States, and Europe, is becoming a global standard.

According to the industry trend report titled 'Trends in Standardization of Electric Vehicle Rapid Charging Specifications and Implications' by the Korea Automobile Research Institute (hereinafter referred to as HARRI), CHAdeMO, which was developed first, initially had a high market share, but Combo overtook it as Japan was passive in developing electric vehicles and charging technology.

In addition to the CCS (hereinafter referred to as Combo) standards of the US, Europe, and Korea, the CHAdeMO of Japan, and the GB/T of China, Tesla's proprietary standards coexist, and unifying the standards can improve convenience and reduce costs.

The Combo type can perform slow, rapid, and emergency rapid charging with one charging port, and is ahead of CHAdeMO and GB/T in terms of high-power charger availability, so it has a faster rapid charging speed and is more convenient. It is divided into Combo1 and Combo2, but has the advantage of good compatibility by using the same signal protocol.

On the other hand, when using the PLC communication method, information such as remaining battery capacity and charging speed are not shared with the charger during charging.However, there is also a disadvantage in that charging information cannot be provided smoothly when frequency interference occurs.

According to an analysis by Precedence Research last year, the global charger market share (in value) is expected to grow to 38.7%, 44.9%, and 48.0% for Combo in 2021, 2025, and 2027, while CHAdeMO is expected to decrease to 27.5%, 21.5%, and 18.5%, respectively.

Nissan, which has been at the forefront of CHAdeMO development and distribution, recently switched its 'ARIYA' rapid charging standard to Combo, which clearly shows that CHAdeMO's driving force has weakened and that it will be difficult to reverse its weakness.

Tesla has already secured compatibility with Combo in Europe and has maintained an exclusive strategy in the US, but is currently strengthening compatibility with Combo in order to meet the subsidy eligibility requirements of the 'National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI)' project.

Through the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) project, the U.S. government plans to spend $7.5 billion over the next five years starting last year to subsidize the installation of electric vehicle chargers, but to receive the subsidy, you must install a Combo charger.

Hanjaeyeon said that strengthening international cooperation is necessary to ensure that the construction of rapid charging infrastructure in emerging markets does not work as a disadvantage to Korean companies.

There is a claim that emerging countries may distribute electric vehicles and chargers based solely on price without a long-term strategy, and if China's GB/T or ChaoJi standards become mainstream in emerging countries, it could be a disadvantageous factor for our companies.

For example, Shanghai GM Wuling of China applied GB/T to the Indonesian 'Wuling Air EV', and the model ranked first in electric vehicle sales in 2022 due to its price competitiveness, and Hyundai Motor's 'IONIQ5'' missed the top spot by finishing in second place.

Accordingly, Hanjayeon emphasized that it is necessary to convey through international cooperation that the spread of the Combo standard, a global standard, is essential for emerging countries that are beginning to implement policies to promote local production and export of electric vehicles in order to be included in the international supply chain.