SEOUL : South Korea on Friday said it will provide 7 trillion won in financial support for its battery makers seeking to invest in infrastructure in North America over the next five years to help firms cope with the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act.
The U.S. Treasury Department last week unveiled stricter electric vehicle tax rules, requiring automakers to source a certain percentage of critical minerals for EV batteries from the United States or a U.S. free-trade partner to qualify for new U.S. federal incentives under the Inflation Reduction Act.
"Both the government and businessmen should cooperate to find solutions together to effectively cope with situations changing rapidly after the Inflation Reduction Act," Trade Minister Lee Chang-yang said while presiding over a meeting with major battery cell makers and materials firms.