[Reporter’s Notebook] National Assembly Audit of the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment Overlooks 'Industry'

I closely followed the first National Assembly audit of the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment held on October 14. The Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment was newly established on October 1 by integrating the energy functions of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy into the former Ministry of Environment. From the outset, various sectors expressed concerns that the new ministry might focus excessively on environmental issues at the expense of industry.

The audit on this day clearly demonstrated that these concerns were not unfounded. The standing committee responsible for overseeing the ministry was designated as the Climate, Energy, Environment and Labor Committee. Most of the committee members concentrated on 'environment' and 'labor' issues. Even the questions related to energy did not stray far from these categories.

For example, discussions regarding the closure of coal-fired power plants and the expansion of renewable energy focused primarily on a just transition, such as potential job losses for workers, rather than the impact on industry. The government plans to fill much of the power supply gap resulting from the closure of coal-fired power plants with renewable energy. The goal is to increase the current renewable energy capacity from 34GW to over 100GW by 2030. However, on this day, no one questioned whether this plan is realistic or whether there could be any side effects.

Policies to expand renewable energy as a response to climate change must also take into account the development of domestic industries. Over 90% of solar cell supply depends on China, and in the case of offshore wind power, key equipment such as turbines is largely imported. Nevertheless, these issues were not seriously addressed during the audit. Minister Kim Seonghwan stated that domestically produced tandem solar cells would be commercialized ahead of schedule, but did not mention specific details regarding the technology level or timeline.

Lee Yongwoo, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, raised concerns that the liquefied natural gas (LNG) power plant planned for the Yongin National Semiconductor Industrial Complex is not suitable for addressing climate change. This is in line with the administrative lawsuit filed by Greenpeace and other climate and environmental groups seeking to revoke the construction permit for the LNG plant at the Yongin Semiconductor Complex. However, LNG power generation can help offset the variability of renewable energy. Even for the long-term expansion of renewables, some LNG power plants are necessary.

There was not a complete absence of discussion on industrial promotion. Kim Sohui, a member of the People Power Party, called for support for climate technology, while Yoon Sanghyun requested that the voices of the industrial sector be reflected in the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) for greenhouse gas reduction. However, these topics were overshadowed by environmental issues such as the Four Major Rivers Project, climate dams, and algal blooms. Some ruling party members argued that the greenhouse gas reduction targets for the industrial sector should be further strengthened.

Energy is not only a crucial means of responding to climate change, but it is also directly linked to national economic development and security. If we fail to maintain a balanced perspective that includes both 'climate and environment' as well as 'industry,' we may soon face another government reorganization, just as other countries have after experiencing trial and error.