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| A model poses with KT's electric vehicles and charger at its headquarters in Seoul. Courtesy of KT |
By Kang Seung-woo
KT plans to begin replacing 10 percent of its company cars with electric vehicles (EVs) later this year, the firm said Monday.
The nation's largest fixed-line telecom player currently has 10,000 company cars and is considering switching out some of those cars with EVs starting next year.
"The EV replacement will help mitigate air pollution such as fine dust and carbon monoxide, while reducing vehicle maintenance costs," KT said in a press release.
In line with the envisaged plan to increase the number of EVs, it is also set to install more than 300 chargers at KT's 182 affiliates. Currently, 22 subsidiaries with EVs have 27 chargers.
"Visitors as well as KT employees will be able to use the chargers," the company said.
In March, KT was picked as one of five players to take charge of installing and operating chargers for 9,700 EVs that belong to private citizens.
KT said it remotely controls the EV infrastructure around the clock through KT-MEG, its artificial intelligence-based smart energy platform, which quickly responds to technical glitches and offers differentiated services.
According to KT, KT-MEG is the world's first integrated energy management platform, managing multi-regional energy facilities from an individual building to citywide coverage and providing integrated monitoring and control of energy generation, consumption and trading.
"As the government has stepped up efforts to support EVs and people have higher interest in them, KT expects this year will serve as momentum to expand EVs," said Kim Young-myoung, senior vice president in charge of KT's smart energy business.
"Conforming to the government's eco-friendly policies, KT will work hard to promote them."
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