LS Cable & System Ltd., Korea’s leading maker of electrical wiring, said Wednesday it has set up 17 electric car-charging stations across the country for state-run agencies and municipalities.

The facilities feature high-speed direct current chargers that can charge Hyundai Motor’s BlueOn for 140 km in 30 minutes. The BlueOn is Korea’s first midsize electric vehicle, the company said in a statement.

The 17 locations include the Seoul Central Post Office, the Ministry of Defense, city governments and district offices in three metropolitan cities and six provinces.

The project comes as a precursor to the full-fledged operation of the EV charging stations in Asia’s fourth-largest economy. LS said it has test run 21 chargers in government-led programs.

A consortium led by Hyundai is working to develop Korea’s first commercial compact electric cars by 2014. The automaker supplied some 250 units of the BlueOn last year to central and local governments for a test run.

The government aims to churn out 1 million electric vehicles a year from 2020, of which 700,000 are for export, generating 40 trillion won ($35.6 billion) in sales.

By Shin Hyon-hee (heeshin@heraldcorp.com)