Seoul City and Ministry of Industry Announce Energy Efficiency Innovation Cooperation Vision... Joint Promotion of 5 Flagship Projects

Transfer of Ministry of Industry Authority to Seoul for Introduction of 'Building Energy Usage Cap'
Call for Private Sector Participation in Improving Energy Welfare for Environmentally Vulnerable Groups Facing Climate Crisis

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Seoul Metropolitan Government is jointly promoting five flagship projects with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy: energy efficiency innovation for the top 100 energy-consuming buildings in Seoul, smart energy solution dissemination for public energy institutions, energy efficiency innovation accompaniment in vulnerable residential areas, Eco Mileage-Energy Cashback linkage, and infrastructure establishment for the full-scale expansion of electric mobility.

On the 20th, Seoul announced that it held the "Seoul City-Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy Energy Efficiency Innovation Cooperation Vision Proclamation Ceremony" at Lotte Hotel in Sogong-dong, Seoul. At the proclamation ceremony, Seoul and the Ministry signed a comprehensive memorandum of understanding to achieve the joint vision of "Building a Smart Energy City Seoul and an Advanced Energy Efficiency Nation Korea."

The two organizations agreed to jointly promote five flagship projects: ▲Energy efficiency innovation for the top 100 energy-consuming buildings in Seoul ▲Smart energy solution dissemination for public energy institutions ▲Energy efficiency innovation accompaniment in vulnerable residential areas ▲Eco Mileage-Energy Cashback linkage ▲Infrastructure establishment for the full-scale expansion of electric mobility. Starting with this agreement, two representative pilot projects will be launched first, with active participation from 18 organizations including representative private energy consumers such as companies, universities, and hospitals, as well as public energy institutions.

The "Energy Efficiency Innovation for the Top 100 Energy-Consuming Buildings in Seoul" project is a business that analyzes energy consumption data of about 130 energy-intensive buildings and establishes evaluation criteria so that a total energy consumption cap system can be introduced to large buildings in Seoul. Representative private buildings in Seoul participating in the agreement, such as LG Science Park, KT Cloud, Hanwha Connect, Hanwha Hotels & Resorts, Sogang University, Samsung Hospital, and Asan Hospital, will actively provide energy consumption data to Seoul for detailed analysis, and Seoul will be responsible for analysis and evaluation.

Seoul and the Ministry agreed to actively cooperate so that the total energy consumption cap model, which Seoul has pioneered in city-owned and private buildings, can be fully implemented in 2026. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy will establish institutional and financial support measures and delegate energy consumption management authority for medium and large buildings with a total floor area of 3,000 square meters or more, enabling local governments to set and execute targets suitable for their circumstances.

So far, Seoul has continuously proposed to the central government to delegate authority for building energy and greenhouse gas management to local governments to promote community-led carbon neutrality and has worked to improve related systems. Additionally, Seoul has taken the lead in implementing policies to reduce building greenhouse gases and improve energy efficiency, such as the first local government loan support project for private building energy efficiency and the existing public building zero-energy building (ZEB) conversion project.

Also, the "Smart Energy Solution Dissemination for Public Energy Institutions" project consists of five detailed projects in which energy public institutions, including power generation companies, will pilot smart energy solutions such as EMS (Energy Management System) and new and renewable energy in major Seoul buildings like universities and N Seoul Tower.

Minister Lee Chang-yang of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said, "Energy demand efficiency is a powerful means to reduce energy imports, helping to solve trade deficits and curb inflation," emphasizing, "I hope the five flagship projects promoted together with Seoul will be a catalyst to achieve the vision proclaimed today."

He added, "The 'Energy Efficiency Innovation Project for the Top 100 Energy-Consuming Buildings in Seoul' signifies the full-scale efficiency innovation of energy-intensive existing buildings that have been in a management blind spot. It is expected to reduce building energy consumption by more than 15% annually in Seoul alone, and the Ministry will boldly delegate related authority and provide generous institutional and financial support to create leading cases and expand them to other local governments."

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said, "Since buildings account for about 70% of Seoul's greenhouse gas emissions, Seoul has been steadily preparing systems to manage energy and greenhouse gases of individual buildings, such as establishing green design standards for the first time among local governments and promoting the 'One Million Low-Carbon Buildings Expansion Project' as a core project of the 'Comprehensive Climate Change Response Plan.'"

Mayor Oh also urged private representatives, "I ask for your active participation in Seoul's efforts to improve energy welfare so that environmentally vulnerable groups, who are inevitably vulnerable to the climate crisis, can spend cooler summers and warmer winters."

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