"Carbon Neutrality, Law and Reality Diverge"…Researchers and Industry Call for 'Supplementation'

Technical Briefing Hosted by Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) on the Afternoon of the 3rd

Carbon Neutral Technology Briefing held on the afternoon of the 3rd at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) in Hongneung, Seoul.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] On the 3rd, at the carbon neutrality technology briefing hosted by the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), voices of disappointment regarding carbon neutrality policies were raised by on-site researchers and entrepreneurs.

A representative from Company A pointed out the inadequacy of laws and regulations. He said, "Currently, technology is advancing ahead, but the law is lagging behind," criticizing that the "Act on the Promotion of Hydrogen Economy and Hydrogen Safety Management (Hydrogen Act)," passed by the National Assembly in February last year, does not reflect reality. Specifically, the current Hydrogen Act only regulates hydrogen production methods through petroleum and methane extraction, but the method of producing hydrogen from ammonia, one of the chemical substances containing the most hydrogen, is missing.

As a result, Company A, which purchased the technology for producing hydrogen from ammonia from KIST for a large technology fee, is now facing a situation where, ahead of commercialization in 2030, it must persuade government officials to revise the law rather than focus on technology development. The representative appealed, "Our technology is currently the most advanced in the world, but the US and Japan could catch up quickly," adding, "I hope a regulatory special zone for the hydrogen economy will be designated so that we can freely develop technology until commercialization, or that legal arrangements will be made."

There was also criticism that the government has only verbally set the 2050 carbon neutrality goal without any content to implement it. A scholar said, "Globally, the discussion is moving towards 2070 rather than 2050, and realistically, there is no content for achieving carbon zero other than renewable energy," adding, "While companies seem to be quite proactive, we need to consider how much it costs to reduce carbon dioxide and how much renewable energy can realistically replace it in Korea's environment, unlike other countries." He continued, "To reduce carbon dioxide, companies must secure economic feasibility, and if they suffer losses, they will not proceed," and argued, "I hope the government will outline the scope of what can be done with taxes and how far companies should go."

Complaints were also raised about the government's research funding and equipment purchase support being excessively complicated. A representative from Company B said, "This is a crucial moment to determine whether the technology we are currently researching can be widely disseminated," adding, "When the government provides research funds, the procedures are complicated, and there have been cases where we could not introduce new equipment. Since the government is supporting research investment, I hope they actively expand the limits and support it flexibly and proactively."

There was also an appeal regarding difficulties in securing technical personnel. A representative from Company C said, "Despite high interest in renewable energy and carbon neutrality technologies at the government and corporate levels, there is little interest in the general job market, and personnel are concentrated only in secondary batteries or semiconductors," adding, "Especially for small and medium-sized enterprises, securing personnel is so difficult that they are marginalized."

Meanwhile, on the same day, KIST announced that it has developed technologies such as a method to produce hydrogen by decomposing ammonia, technology to extract formic acid from carbon dioxide, ultra-fine precious metal nano molecular uniformity technology, and carbon fiber recycling technology, and has completed technology transfer to private companies, pledging to devote itself to technology development to achieve the 2050 carbon neutrality goal. Yoon Seok-jin, President of KIST, said, "The current government also places great importance on carbon neutrality, and it seems the next government will also make every effort to respond," adding, "We will further devote ourselves to developing core technologies related to carbon neutrality, and we will play a role in accelerating the transition to a low-carbon industrial structure by immediately transferring the core technologies developed so far to the industry and spreading the technology."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.