Korea's 2025 GHG Emissions Decline, Power Sector Rises; Government Plans Decarbonization
The Greenhouse Gas Inventory & Research Center announced preliminary estimates for Korea's 2025 national greenhouse gas emissions, showing a slight overall decrease but an increase in the power sector.
Our take
Despite renewable growth, why did Korea's power sector GHG emissions rise in 2025?
Korea's 2025 emissions data reveals the fragility of its energy transition, as a 0.2% rise in power sector GHG emissions, driven by increased coal use to offset reduced nuclear power, overshadowed an 8.5% growth in renewable generation.
The article highlights a critical trade-off: while renewable energy capacity is expanding, the operational reliability of nuclear power remains a key variable. When nuclear generation declines, the immediate and most readily available solution for grid stability is often increased coal power, directly undermining decarbonization efforts in the short term. This dynamic suggests that achieving ambitious emission reduction targets requires not only scaling up renewables but also ensuring consistent baseload power, either through stable nuclear operations or rapidly deployable, low-carbon alternatives.
What the source says
- The Greenhouse Gas Inventory & Research Center reported Korea's total national GHG emissions for 2025 as 685.71 million tons, a 0.9% decrease from 2024.
- Despite an 8.5% increase in renewable energy generation, the power sector's GHG emissions rose by 0.2% in 2025 due to increased coal power to ensure stable electricity supply amidst reduced nuclear power.
- The Korean government plans to accelerate the achievement of the 2030 target of 100 GW renewable energy capacity and promote a roadmap for coal power phase-out.
- The government plans to increase the renewable energy financial support budget by 133.1% to 1.5108 trillion KRW in 2027 from 648 billion KRW in 2026.
- The 'Green Grand Transformation (K-GX)' strategy, supporting core technology development for decarbonization in high-emission industries like steel and petrochemicals, is scheduled for announcement within the year.
- The government aims for electric vehicles to comprise 50% of new car sales by 2030, supported by a 32.8% increase in next year's EV budget and an expansion of subsidized units from 300,000 to 430,000.
- Choi Min-ji Choi Min-ji, head of the Greenhouse Gas Inventory & Research Center, stated that the foundation for accelerating decarbonization, centered on renewable energy, was laid last year for achieving the 2030 NDC.
For investors — Investors in Korean DER should anticipate increased government funding and policy support for renewable energy projects, electric vehicles, and industrial decarbonization, as the government seeks to meet ambitious NDC targets. However, the continued reliance on coal for grid stability suggests that baseload power solutions and grid infrastructure upgrades will also be critical areas for investment and policy focus.
Watch: Announcement of the 'Green Grand Transformation (K-GX)' strategy and the 'Carbon Neutral Green Growth National Strategy and 2nd National Basic Plan'.
Weekly digest
What changed in Korea's power market this week — one email, every week.
Email only, used solely to send this digest (delivered via Resend). Unconfirmed sign-ups are deleted after 30 days. Free.