Economic and environmental implications of the recent energy transition on South Korea’s electricity sector

Jeon

2020

Energies

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The world’s aging fleet of nuclear power reactors faces decommissioning. Because decommissioning is implemented through a series of procedures, and this process changes the links between some industries, its economic impact needs to be investigated. This study compared the economic impacts of three nuclear industry sectors—nuclear generation, nuclear power construction, and nuclear decommissioning—using input-output analysis in South Korea, the first Asian country that has declared a nuclear phaseout. The study also traced changes in the structure of the nuclear industry during the Korean nuclear phaseout and the consequent economic impacts. The study found that the implementation of the nuclear phaseout will lead to a decrease in the induced outputs and the value added of nuclear industries in South Korea; however, this would be offset by deploying more renewable energy. In addition, the temporal impacts on individual sectors vary depending on changes in the number of reactors being decommissioned and the expenditure profile of the nuclear decommissioning sector. The findings call for policy measures that support a soft landing for nuclear industry sectors and related stakeholders, timely development of necessary technologies, and transparency in public communication. This study provides a methodological approach and input structure that can be used for studies in other countries.

Section: Energy Transition Policies and Nuclear Industry Sectors In Smentioning

confidence: 99%

Structural Changes to Nuclear Energy Industries and the Economic Effects Resulting from Energy Transition Policies in South Korea

Jeon

2020

Energies

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“…The central approaches to reach this goal are renewable energy development and energy efficiency improvement. 33 They include various technical and policy innovations, such as electric vehicles, smart meters, carbon pricing, and emissions trading.…”

Section: Energy Transitionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Energy equity deals with the accessibility and affordability of energy supply across the population. 35 Stakeholder participation policies encourage citizens to join community energy initiatives or projects (e.g., Kim 33 and Mundaca et al 36 ). To successfully reach a low-carbon future, innovations are necessary for both policies and technologies.…”

Section: Energy Transitionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Circular economy and energy transition: A nexus focusing on the non-energy use of fuels

Chen

2019

Energy & Environment

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Given emerging concerns about climate change, low-carbon energy transition is advocated and promoted. Non-energy use of fossil fuels accounted for 8.9% of the world’s total final energy consumption in 2015. Non-energy use intensity does not show an evident reduction, while energy intensity as fuel per dollar of gross domestic product has decreased thanks to energy transition efforts such as energy efficiency promotion and renewable energy expansion. This study conducted an extensive review of the circular economy and energy transition frameworks, and found that the energy transition framework has a critical gap, so it cannot provide a foundation for investigating non-energy use. This study suggests that the energy transition discourse needs to be extended to incorporate the transition of non-energy use and the achievement of a closed loop of non-energy use, which is part of the circular economy framework. The coordinated circular economy–energy transition approach could bring in synergistic effects, such as promoting circular economy activities among industries, reducing energy demand, and attaining additional greenhouse gas mitigation potential.

“…It was found that the discounted cumulative costs from 2009 to 2050 in the SS scenario would be 20% and 10% higher than in the BL and GP scenarios, respectively. Kim 17 constructed nine scenarios that reflect changes in South Korea 's energy policy and analyzed the environmental and economic impacts of the South Korean power sector using LEAP. Despite using very conservative assumptions about the generation of renewable energy, the study found a more economically feasible pathway that would yield less GHG emissions than the baseline scenario.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Optimal energy mix for greenhouse gas reduction with renewable energy – The case of the South Korean electricity sector

Cho

Lee³

et al. 2019

Energy & Environment

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The power generation sector is one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions in South Korea. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions in this sector is therefore of crucial importance. The government has recently released its core energy policy objectives: elimination of coal-fired power generation, phase-out of nuclear plants, and promotion of renewable energy sources. This energy policy should be consistent with the national climate change response policy. This paper analyzed the optimum power generation structure based on the South Korean government’s energy policy and climate change policy and then analyzed the optimum power generation structure if the greenhouse gas reduction and renewable energy targets were different. Seven scenarios with different 2030 greenhouse gas reduction and renewable energy generation targets were investigated. The scenario analysis shows that it is difficult to reduce dependence on coal power generation if the South Korean government’s current energy and climate change policies are maintained. The current greenhouse gas reduction target level is insufficient to be a driving force for energy transition, but dependence on coal power generation can be reduced by applying a deeper level of greenhouse gas reduction (e.g. 50% reduction compared to BAU). To achieve the energy transition planned by the South Korean government, it would be necessary to set a target for greenhouse gas reduction that is deeper than the current plan. The results of this study analyzing the optimal power configuration for 2030 in light of South Korea’s energy and climate change policies are expected to contribute to the South Korean government’s establishment of policies in the future.