Analysis of Korea’s Green Technology Policy and Investment Trends for the Realization of Carbon Neutrality: Focusing on CCUS Technology

Seok-Ho Jung,Eunhoo Jeong,Youngjun Kang,Hongjin Kim

doi:10.3390/pr10030501

Seok-Ho Jung, Eunhoo Jeong + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10030501

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Abstract

In 2008, the Republic of Korea announced the Low Carbon Green Growth vision as the national growth engine. This Green Growth vision invested in developing state-of-the-art green technologies to minimize greenhouse gas and pollutant emissions. Following a change in administration, Korean green technologies were re-categorized into six core technologies for climate change response in 2014, and ten core technologies for carbon-neutrality in 2021. The government proposed the realization of an inclusive green state in the 3rd Five-Year Green Growth Plan announced in 2019. Following the Green New Deal announced in 2020, green technology policies and investments continue, with the declaration of 2050 carbon neutrality. In the past two years, government policies from the 2050 Carbon Neutrality Strategy to the 2050 Carbon-Neutral Scenario consider Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage (CCUS) as an important technology to reduce CO2 and meet carbon-neutral goals. This study examines major green technology policy trends, focusing on CCUS, beginning with the Green Growth era in 2008 to today. R&D investment costs related to green technology during the green growth period and CCUS-related investment costs over the past 10 years (2011–2020) are utilized in statistical analyses (correlation, trend) to investigate and analyze investment volatility in green and CCUS technologies related to climate change. Finally, the study will provide basic information for establishing CCUS-related R&D policies, which will continue to increase in achieving carbon neutrality.

Highlights

Between 2008–2012, Low Carbon Green Growth (Low Carbon Green Growth, originally a vision, was the flagship policy during the Lee Myung-Bak administration) was the great engine powering the Republic of Korea
From 2008 to 2012, green growth was the basis of national policy, and it was an important period that became the basis of the current carbon neutrality period
National-level investments in green technologies continued over the years, through the 3rd 5-year Green Growth Plan (2019)—which proposes a roadmap for constructing a Sociallyinclusive Green Nation, and through to the 2020 Green New Deal and the 2050 Carbon Neutral policy [1–7]

Summary

Introduction

Between 2008–2012, Low Carbon Green Growth (Low Carbon Green Growth, originally a vision, was the flagship policy during the Lee Myung-Bak administration) was the great engine powering the Republic of Korea. In 2020, the Korean government proposed various policies relating to carbon neutrality, including the 2050 Carbon Neutrality Strategy, the 2021 Carbon Neutrality Implementation Plan, and the Carbon Capture and Utilization (CCU) Technology Innovation Roadmap. This research revised and developed information from the following literature: Research on Investment and Policy Directors for Climate Change Adaptation and the Green Technology Concept and Policy Development Direction Report by the Korea Institute of Science and Technology Evaluation and Planning, Analysis of the State of the Art of International Policies and Projects on CCU for Climate Change Mitigation with a Focus on the Cases in Korea by the Sustainability Journal, and the CCU Technology Innovation Roadmap by the Korean government, and assessed literature on Korea’s carbon-neutrality policies and investment trends [2,4,10,15].

Green Technology Policy and Investment in the Green Growth Period

CCUS R&D Investment (2011–2020)

Findings

Conclusions