Accelerating eco-friendly vehicle technology and domestic distribution
Development of Level 4 autonomous vehicles by 2024
Transforming the Future Car Ecosystem with 60 Trillion Won in Private Investment


The global automobile market is projected to experience low growth of around 1% going forward. Furthermore, changes are occurring, such as eco-friendliness, intelligence, and service-oriented trends, triggered by the Fourth Industrial Revolution and strengthening environmental regulations. The electric vehicle market is expanding, the development and commercialization of autonomous vehicles are accelerating, and car-sharing services are proliferating.

On the 15th, the government held a ceremony to declare the national vision for future automobiles and jointly announced the '2030 Future Automobile Industry Development Strategy' with relevant ministries.

Global auto OEMs are pursuing large-scale investments related to future vehicles along with restructuring, and governments around the world are also pursuing large-scale demonstration complexes to build infrastructure for future vehicle development and road operation.

As of 2018, South Korea produced 4.03 million vehicles, ranking 7th in the world in automobile production. As such, the automobile industry plays a significant role in the national economy. This is the backdrop to concerns that if we fail to adequately prepare for the transition to future vehicles, the national economic growth momentum may be weakened.

However, unlike the traditional automobile market, the future car market still lacks a clear leader, presenting an opportunity for the Korean auto industry to make a significant leap forward. The government established the 2030 Future Auto Industry Development Strategy after holding 21 meetings with auto OEMs and parts manufacturers, telecommunications, software, and semiconductor companies, auto-related unions, and academic societies.

The government has set two main goals. First, it will increase the share of electric and hydrogen vehicles in domestic new car sales to 33% by 2030 and increase their global market share to 10%. Second, it will launch Level 4 autonomous vehicles by 2024 and, by 2027, establish major road infrastructure nationwide to support Level 4 autonomous driving, thereby achieving the world's first commercialization.

He also presented three key strategies for the Korean future vehicle industry over the next decade: 1) aggressively targeting the global market by developing eco-friendly vehicle technologies and accelerating domestic distribution; 2) establishing a fully autonomous vehicle system and infrastructure by 2024; and 3) transitioning to an open future vehicle ecosystem based on approximately 60 trillion won in private investment.

To successfully achieve its two major goals and three major strategies, the government plans to invest 385.6 billion won in eco-friendly vehicle technology development projects from 2020 to 2026, and the project has already passed the preliminary feasibility study. We also invest in autonomous vehicle systems, components, and communications.

The government plans to invest 1.7 trillion won in implementing Level 4 autonomous driving from 2021 to 2027, and a preliminary feasibility study is currently underway. Additionally, the government plans to operate an industry-academia-research human resource development program to train 2,000 R&D and field personnel by 2025, and will provide over 2 trillion won for domestic production and future development of components.

The Future Vehicle Strategy Council, the control tower for future vehicle policy, will operate until 2024. It will host regular working-level meetings, with participation from officials from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Ministry of Science and ICT, the Ministry of Environment, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, the National Police Agency, and industry experts. Furthermore, to foster convergence across industries such as automobiles, parts, and IT, the Council plans to establish a "Future Vehicle Industry Alliance" and operate a "Labor-Management-Government Forum."

Through the aforementioned policies, the government expects to reduce traffic fatalities to less than 1,000 by 2030, reduce traffic congestion by 30%, reduce greenhouse gases by 30%, and reduce fine dust by 11%.