Sejong, December 07 - The Ministry of Environment (ME, Minister Han Wha-jin) and the EU Directorate-General for Climate Action held a policy discussion on GHG emissions trading on November 28 and shared their current status and plans for future cooperation. The Ministry of Environment and the EU discussed continuous emission trading during the G20 Environment and Climate Ministers' Meeting on August 31, 2022, and the COP27 on November 15, 2022. It is the first bilateral meeting attended by officials working at the front line from both parties to discuss emissions trading.

Emissions trading and carbon tax are the centers of numerous international dialogues to achieve carbon neutrality. The G7 is to launch an international Climate Club to set the price for carbon emissions, and the OECD is also reviewing the instituting of the Inclusive Framework on Carbon Pricing (IFCP) to expand current carbon pricing policies. At this juncture, the significance of policy talk on emissions trading between South Korea and the EU is big.

Key discussions during the 1st policy talk are as follows:

South Korea shared the current progress and performance of emissions trading and introduced its emissions MRV (Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification). Especially the Ministry of Environment let the EU know that Korea retained a verification capability comparable to the EU by emphasizing that the National Institute of Environmental Research (NIER) and the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) signed the Multilateral Recognition Agreement (MLA) in January. The two sides discussed ways of recognizing South Korean emission verification results within the EU.

The EU shared its results of operation and the details of improvements to be made in its emissions trading system. The EU has been organizing the "Fit for 55" package, which raises the EU's ambitious goal of reducing GHG emissions to at least 55% by 2030 (a total of 13 legislative proposals). Especially the EU is planning to phase out free allocations of emission allowances and to create a new self-standing emissions trading system for buildings and road transport.

Jeon Wan, Director of the Climate Change Mitigation Division, said, "EU started emissions trading ten years before us, and we have a chance to exploit that experience to advance our system. We will continue to extend our cooperation with non-EU countries, including the UK."

Contact: Lee Chang-hwan, Deputy Director

Climate Change Mitigation Division / +82-(0)44-201-6592

Foreign Media Contact: Chun Minjo(Rachel)

+82-(0)44-201-6055 / rachelmchun@korea.kr