122 Billion KRW Invested in Localization of Next-Generation High-Speed Train Components

Brake pad replacement work for KTX is underway at the Goyang Vehicle Depot in Deogyang-gu, Goyang-si, Gyeonggi Province. On the 21st, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced that it will invest 122 billion KRW of national funds to develop 15 major railway vehicle parts, including brake pads for high-speed trains. / Photo by Lee Chunhee

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] The government will invest 122 billion KRW of national funds to develop domestically produced parts to advance railway vehicle technology in South Korea.

On the 21st, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced that it will officially launch the "Railway Vehicle Parts R&D Project" aimed at enhancing the self-sustainability of domestic railway vehicle parts manufacturing technology and industry, as well as strengthening international competitiveness in overseas railway markets.

This project will be carried out over six years until December 2025, with a total national budget of 122 billion KRW. It consists of two key focus areas and 15 detailed tasks, and plans to establish a commercialization support system. In the first year, the Ministry plans to prepare conceptual and basic design plans for the parts to be developed, and from next year, proceed with detailed design plans and prototype production.

The two key focus areas are divided into the development of localization for 10 types of parts with high demand but heavy dependence on imports, and the development of five future-leading parts to secure competitiveness in overseas markets.

In particular, through this R&D, 10 core parts of the EMU-320 and EMU-250, next-generation main high-speed trains that will replace the existing KTX and KTX-Sancheon, will be developed. High-speed rail brake discs and brake pads, modular main circuit breaker systems, and high-speed rail air conditioning systems are scheduled for development within this year. Additionally, a total of 15 parts will be developed, including three parts for urban railway vehicles, one set for trams, and one part for logistics vehicles.

The commercialization support system to strengthen the application of research outcomes will involve various stakeholders participating in the R&D, including railway vehicle manufacturers and parts producers, railway operators as demand sources, research institutions, and certification bodies.

Currently, the global railway market is considered a high-growth industry with a scale of 232 trillion KRW as of January 2018, growing at an average annual rate of 2.6%. Among this, the railway vehicle parts market accounts for 72 trillion KRW, representing 31% of the total market.

However, South Korea's market share in railway vehicle parts is only 1.3% (900 billion KRW), which is minimal compared to leading countries like Canada and China, whose shares exceed 10%. As a result, most domestic railway vehicle parts are reliant on imports. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport analyzes that this gap is due to most domestic railway vehicle parts companies being small-scale SMEs, leading to a significant technological gap.

The Ministry expects that through this R&D project, parts manufacturers including SMEs will secure localization technology for parts production and strengthen industrial competitiveness by increasing sales through stable supply to domestic demand sources.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Korea Agency for Infrastructure Technology Advancement plan to hold the "2020 Railway Vehicle Parts Development Project Kick-off Meeting" on the afternoon of the 22nd at the Korea Agency for Infrastructure Technology Advancement. Participants will include representatives from the Ministry, the agency, railway operators, vehicle parts manufacturers, certification bodies, and related SMEs involved in the project.

Song Si-hwa, Director of the Railway Operation Safety Division at the Ministry, said, "We plan to continuously support technological and industrial innovation in the railway vehicle parts industry. Ultimately, we will keep preparing tailored government support measures to strengthen the self-sustainability of the parts industry and foster national representative companies with international competitiveness in the global parts market."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.