Busan Chamber of Commerce and Industry Conducts Survey on Local Companies' Opinions Regarding the '2030 National Greenhouse Gas Reduction Target'

Implementation of Enhanced Greenhouse Gas Reduction Targets... Majority of Local Industries Express Concerns

Busan Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Dongguk Lee] The Busan Chamber of Commerce and Industry announced the results of an urgent survey on regional companies' opinions regarding the '2030 National Greenhouse Gas Reduction Target' on the 24th. The survey targeted 100 major local manufacturing companies.

According to the survey results, local manufacturing companies generally agreed on the necessity of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. 58.6% of the surveyed companies acknowledged the need for greenhouse gas reduction.

However, 21.4% of companies still did not agree on the necessity, and 20% responded that they were unsure about greenhouse gas reduction, indicating that a significant portion of local manufacturers still have a low awareness of issues related to carbon neutrality.

The implementation of the 'Carbon Neutrality and Green Growth Basic Act Enforcement Decree,' which raised the greenhouse gas reduction target by 40% compared to 2018, is expected to further increase concerns and burdens on the local industrial sector.

Most companies expressed that the government's decision to raise the greenhouse gas reduction target from the original 26.3% to 40% compared to 2018 in this enforcement decree is excessive and voiced concerns about the resulting burden. A majority of 75.7% of responding companies said the government's target increase is excessive, and 87.1% complained about the burden caused by it.

In fact, a representative of a steel company participating in this survey stated, "Compared to major countries, the government's target is set challengingly, so it is necessary to fully consider the industry's position." Another company producing automobile parts in the region also expressed concerns that "the cost burden on companies due to greenhouse gas reduction and the huge investment burden for improving production environments could weaken corporate competitiveness."

Since the government announced the 'Basic Roadmap for Achieving the 2030 National Greenhouse Gas Reduction Target' in 2018, it legislated a minimum standard of reducing national greenhouse gas emissions (NDC, Nationally Determined Contribution) by more than 35% compared to 2018 through the Carbon Neutrality Basic Act enacted last August, and announced 40% as the final reduction target in this enforcement decree.

As greenhouse gas reduction policies strengthen, the biggest concern among local industries was 'weakening competitiveness due to reduced production and employment,' pointed out by 34.3% of all responding companies. Companies anticipating 'burden of related facility investments' accounted for 28.6%. Other concerns included cost burdens from using renewable energy (18.6%) and additional burdens such as purchasing carbon emission rights (10.0%).

Meanwhile, although overall regulatory strengthening on greenhouse gas reduction is expected, the response level of local companies remains low. Only 34.3% of respondents said they are 'currently establishing related measures,' while the remaining 62.9% have not responded at all, indicating an urgent need to prepare related countermeasures.

As countermeasures at the local company level, 41.4% of responding companies considered 'establishing low-carbon, high-efficiency production facilities and process improvements.' This was followed by carbon emission rights trading (18.6%), expanding the use of renewable energy (18.6%), adjusting production volume (14.3%), and expanding related R&D (7.1%).

Regarding policy support, the largest group of companies (28.6%) requested 'strengthening support for related facilities and R&D,' followed by support for cooperation between large and small-medium enterprises (25.7%) and lowering reduction targets (20.0%).

A representative from the Economic Trend Analysis Center of the Busan Chamber of Commerce and Industry said, "Compared to major countries such as the EU and the United States, the domestic industrial structure has a higher proportion of manufacturing, and the commercialization level of carbon reduction technology is not high, so the government's target is set challengingly, causing great concern in the industry." He added, "It is necessary to closely monitor the enforcement process of related laws to additionally reflect the demands of the industrial field."

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