Consumer intentions to purchase battery electric vehicles in Korea

Abstract

In Korea, the sales of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) have increased since their introduction to the market in 2010. However, considering the government's plan to introduce BEVs, current BEVs sales in Korea are still below targeted numbers. Among several reasons for this, consumers' intentions and desired time to purchase BEVs are the most important. This study identifies the factors that affect and influence these two reasons. We used survey data containing these two reasons as stated preferences and applied a binary choice model to estimate consumers' intentions to purchase BEVs and an ordered model to estimate the desired period for purchasing BEVs. The study's results show that prior experience driving BEVs and other additional factors—including number of household vehicles, educational level, and perception of government incentives and public parking benefits—have a significant effect on consumers' intentions and desired time to purchase BEVs. Therefore, providing consumers with prior opportunities to drive BEVs is critical for BEVs' full market penetration in Korea.