Expanding Electric Vehicle Adoption and Power Demand Forecasting for Sustainable Smart Cities: A Case Study of South Korea

This study aims to establish power stability to expand the adoption of EV in smart cities. Unlike fossil fuel-based power generation, which can respond to real-time demand, predicting power demand is essential if the adoption of renewable energy, which struggles with real-time response, increases. This research was conducted based on South Korea's power consumption to transform it into a sustainable smart city based on renewable energy. Using past power data from South Korea and employing the Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) model, we predict energy generation, consumption, and EV charging station energy usage from 2024 to 2030. The study results indicate that with the current policies, South Korea is likely to face power supply challenges by 2030 to achieve the targeted renewable energy generation rates, EV adoption rates, and annual GDP growth required for G7 invitation. To achieve carbon neutrality and expand EV adoption, it is crucial not only to meet the current renewable energy generation targets but also to build renewable energy infrastructure that can meet future demand. The prediction of energy demand and supply in this study suggests that if economic growth continues and EV adoption expands, power shortages are likely by 2030. Therefore, for the sustainable operation of smart cities, it is essential to expand power infrastructure based on the predicted data.