[Market Focus] Government Expands 'Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment'... Solar Stocks Surge

On September 8, solar energy-related stocks are showing strong performance. This comes as the government is focusing on renewable energy projects, including expanding and reorganizing the Ministry of Environment into the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment.

As of 10:00 a.m. on this day, OCI Holdings is trading at 98,100 won, up 6,100 won (6.63%) from the previous trading day.

Most other solar energy-related stocks are also on the rise. HD Hyundai Energy Solutions is up 5.16%, Wonik IPS is up 3.39%, SK EterNix is up 2.17%, and Hanwha Solutions is up 2.09%.

This is due to the government's announcement on September 7 that it will transfer parts of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy's energy sector-excluding resource industries and nuclear power exports-to the Ministry of Environment, expanding and reorganizing it as the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment.

Previously, the government had signaled an "energy transition" policy direction, indicating plans to expand renewable energy projects. The expansion and reorganization of the Ministry of Environment is also part of this policy direction.

The government has also selected the "Energy Expressway" as a national policy initiative. The Energy Expressway is a long-term project that will be pursued from as early as 2030 (West Coast Energy Expressway) to as late as 2040 (construction of a nationwide U-shaped power grid). The West Coast Energy Expressway project alone is expected to be worth nearly 11 trillion won.

In addition, the sharp rise in solar energy-related stocks on the New York Stock Exchange appears to have had an impact. On September 5 (local time), Sunrun rose 10.65%, Canadian Solar was up 15.04%, and First Solar also gained 1.62%.

Seo Sangyoung, a researcher at Mirae Asset Securities, explained, "Solar energy-related stocks showed strong performance on news that the Chinese government implemented price control measures to prevent losses caused by excessive production and price competition among solar companies, resulting in higher prices for Chinese-made solar products."