Exion Group Expects Benefits from Constitutional Court Ruling on 'Carbon Neutrality Basic Act'

Exion Group's carbon capture business is expected to gain strong momentum in conjunction with the Constitutional Court's climate litigation ruling.

This is thanks to the carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) product line developed through years of research by its subsidiary, Carbon Korea. After February 2026, an expansion in CCUS usage is anticipated due to the enactment of more stringent climate laws.

According to Exion Group on the 30th, on the 29th of this month, the Constitutional Court ruled that Article 8, Paragraph 1 of the Carbon Neutrality and Green Growth Basic Act (hereinafter the Carbon Neutrality Basic Act), enacted by the Korean government to respond to the climate crisis, is unconstitutional. The court found that declaring carbon neutrality by 2050 without setting a quantitative level to effectively guarantee reductions from 2031 to 2049 violates the principle of non-omission protection. This principle means that the state must take appropriate and efficient minimum protective measures to safeguard the basic rights of its citizens.

Article 8, Paragraph 1 of the Carbon Neutrality Basic Act, enacted in September 2021, stipulates a reduction of at least 35% in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared to 2018 levels. The government has set a national greenhouse gas reduction target (NDC) of 40% by 2030 compared to 2018 through enforcement ordinances.

Following this ruling, the government and the National Assembly must present strengthened climate measures reflecting the Constitutional Court's intent by the revision deadline of February 28, 2026. Immediate establishment of greenhouse gas emission forecasts, reduction rates, and carbon absorption/removal plans is expected, followed by budget allocation and legal and institutional reforms.

Inevitably, industries with high greenhouse gas emissions such as thermal power generation, steel, cement, and petrochemicals will need to meet the levels set by the government. The higher the level of amendment to the Carbon Neutrality Basic Act, the faster Exion Group's performance is expected to improve. Domestically, about 600 million tons of carbon dioxide are emitted annually, but most are not recycled.

Exion Group's subsidiary, Carbon Korea, is a leading domestic CCUS specialist. It succeeded in domesticating industrial small- and medium-sized carbon capture facilities for the first time in Korea and holds over 100 global patents in carbon dioxide capture and storage technology. Recently, in CCUS industry-leading countries such as Sweden and the United States, it achieved the highest technology readiness level, TRL9 (Technology Readiness Level 9).

An Exion Group official stated, “The market related to the Carbon Neutrality Basic Act will have ‘eco-friendliness’ and ‘efficiency’ as the core competitiveness,” adding, “We have already achieved 93% completeness in carbon dioxide capture technology and fundamentally solved environmental pollution issues by using non-toxic potassium carbonate adsorbents.”