The Ministry of Environment on Sunday unveiled a list of hybrid vehicles for which it will provide a state subsidy of 1 million won ($900) per unit starting on Jan. 1, 2015.

“They are five models of three auto brands ― Hyundai Motor, Toyota Motor and Ford Motor,” the ministry said. It has set the subsidiaries budget for the eco-friendly cars at 30 billion won for 30,000 units for next year.

The models are Hyundai Motor’s Sonata 2.0GDI, Toyota Motor’s Prius, Prius V, Lexus CT200h and Ford Motor’s Fusion Hybrid, all of which have an engine capacity of less than 2.0 liters.

The subsidy will not be offered as an immediate discount when consumers buy the cars. It will be provided to those who file applications with the Korea Environment Corp. after registering their cars.

The Environment Ministry has been pressured to scale back its spending on subsidies for eco-friendly hybrid vehicles by about 25 percent from its earlier plan, which may lead to a backlash from consumers and automakers.

Though the ministry had planned to provide 40,000 retail buyers of hybrid cars with subsidies totaling 40 billion won in 2015, the National Assembly has urged it to cut the collective state benefit by 10 billion won to 30 billion won.

Some lawmakers from the Environment & Labor Committee of the National Assembly cited the weakening popularity of hybrid vehicles in the wake of low gasoline and diesel prices in calling for the budget restriction.

By Kim Yon-se (kys@heraldcorp.com)