It is expected that SK Energy will develop and provide a solution that combines electric vehicle charging and auto-stay’s car washing service to eliminate inconvenience for electric vehicle users and speed up the transition to eco-friendly vehicles (SK Energy official)
SK Energy, a subsidiary of SK Innovation’s oil business, announced on the 30th that it will invest in “AUTOSTAY,” a startup specializing in automatic car washing subscription services, and cooperate in services for eco-friendly car customers. The specific size of the investment will not be disclosed according to the agreement between the two companies.
Auto Stay, established in 2019, provides automatic washing as a subscription product. In order to minimize vehicle scratches, various types of automatic car washers are developed and operated, including touchless car washers that do not directly touch the car. It has the capabilities necessary for car washing services, such as a mobile application (app) that allows customers to easily book and manage car washing, store design and operation for car washing convenience, and development of additional products necessary for high-quality car washing.
The car wash subscription product, priced at 30,000 won per month, consists of unlimited use of automatic car wash devices (limited to once a day) and providing a personal space (drying zone) where self-inside car wash is possible after external car wash. Auto Stay is also a real model for the car wash startup of the original drama “X in Crisis” of Wavve, an online video service (OTT) released in September this year.
SK Energy plans to use Auto Stay’s automatic car washing subscription products as a key service for eco-friendly car service platforms. Just as internal combustion locomotive customers use washing cars after refueling at gas stations at discounted prices, SK Energy’s EV charging business will expand in the future, and it will introduce products that combine charging and car washing benefits.
Meanwhile, SK Energy is promoting various projects to provide total transportation service (TTS) services such as Auto Stay to customers. It introduced its business model “Energy Super Station” 1 to generate renewable energy and charge electric vehicles at gas stations in February this year, and invested in the U.S. energy solution company “Atom Power” in August to secure the technology needed to build electric vehicle chargers.