SEOUL – Following the Ministry of Climate, Energy, and Environment’s announcement of the “Energy Transition Promotion Plan” on April 6, Greenpeace East Asia has issued a response calling the government’s strategy inadequate, which risks failing to reduce the nation’s dependence on volatile fossil fuels worsened by the war on Iran.

The government’s plan seeks to expand renewable energy capacity to over 100 gigawatts by 2030 and raise the share of renewable energy in power generation to over 20%. Meanwhile, although it maps out retiring 40 of the total 60 coal-fired power plants by 2040, it also proposes retaining 21 coal plants with remaining design life after 2040 as “security reserves.” 

Yeonho Yang, Climate and Energy Campaign Lead at Greenpeace East Asia Seoul office, said:

“It is deeply concerning that, under the banner of ‘energy security,’ a third of coal plants are being kept on standby as emergency power sources, leaving the door open for their continued pollution. This crisis has made it evident that the government’s coal phase-out plan is one that can be called off at any moment, leaving the government’s commitment in question. 

Furthermore, the government’s pledge to reduce coal means little when the gap is simply filled by another fossil fuel, LNG, which, under the current plan, is set to expand to its largest installed capacity in the country’s history. This is a fossil fuel swap rather than a genuine shift to clean energy. Only with a full shift to renewables can we avoid the economic crisis triggered by recurring geopolitical events. People cannot wait for a self-sufficient, affordable, and clean energy system.” 

In the transport sector, the government aims to accelerate its target of having 40% of new vehicle sales be electric or hydrogen by 2030, including early electrification of police cars, LPG taxis, rental vehicles, and corporate fleets. However, Greenpeace argues that the plan lacks punitive measures to force a true market shift away from fossil fuels.

Eunseo Choi, Transport Campaign Lead at Greenpeace East Asia, said:

“This is a critical inflection point for South Korea’s transport sector, which accounts for 26.4% of its oil consumption. Simply pledging to ‘bring forward’ the existing 40% by 2030 target is unlikely to send the urgent market signal needed for a rapid transition. Without clear deadlines for phasing out internal combustion engine cars and strong policy support, the current approach falls far short of what is needed to cut road transport emissions — not only to protect people’s daily lives, but also to free the economy from its dependence on the volatile and insecure oil industry.

The government must strengthen the promised revision of vehicle greenhouse gas standards this year and announce a phase-out of internal combustion engine vehicle sales, sending a clear and powerful signal to both industry and consumers that the transition is no longer optional. At the same time, the temporary fuel tax cut, which disproportionately benefits higher-income households, should have a clear sunset date, with the recovered fiscal resources reinvested into expanding renewable energy-powered charging infrastructure.”

Greenpeace East Asia urges the South Korean government to move beyond “emergency” fossil fuel reserves -such as easing coal restrictions and extending fuel tax cuts – and instead accelerate the transition from a petrostate trap to an electrostate by redirecting fiscal support toward electric vehicles, charging infrastructure, and a concrete roadmap to 100GW of renewable capacity by 2030, building a power and transport system that is structurally immune to the geopolitical shocks now paralyzing the Korean economy.

ENDS

Media Contact: 

Yujie Xue, International Communications Officer, Greenpeace East Asia, +852 5127 3416, [email protected]