Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy Forms Public-Private Council on Renewable Energy... Discussing Expansion of Deployment

Discussion on Setting Goals and Pace for Expanding Renewable Energy for Carbon Neutrality

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Haeyoung] The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy launched the 'Public-Private Council for Climate and Environmentally Friendly Renewable Energy' on the 16th to discuss measures to expand the supply of eco-friendly renewable energy together with environmental civic groups.

On the same day, the Ministry held the first council meeting to finalize the operation plan and discussed the goals and pace of expanding renewable energy for carbon neutrality by 2050.

Although the necessity of expanding renewable energy is high, in the actual supply field, the interests of various stakeholders such as business operators, the government, environmental groups, and local communities are conflicting. Accordingly, the Ministry and environmental civic groups agreed on the need for a continuous forum to discuss the main principles, standards, and effective implementation measures for expanding renewable energy, leading to the launch of the council.

The council is composed of the government, public institutions, and 11 environmental civic groups in the fields of environment, ecology, and energy, and holds monthly roundtable meetings. Regarding the expansion of renewable energy, it plans to discuss general issues and key issues for each renewable energy source such as solar power, wind power, and biomass, ultimately preparing principles, standards, and alternatives for expanding renewable energy that consider environmental value preservation and local acceptance.

Choi Wooseok, Director of the New and Renewable Energy Policy Division at the Ministry, said, "The participation of top experts in the environment and ecology fields in this council is proof of the importance of expanding renewable energy supply," and added, "We will do our best to listen carefully to the opinions of environmental civic groups and to policyize the results of the discussions."