Thirty of South Korea's largest conglomerates will invest 22.4 trillion Korean won (USD18.63 billion) in the country's green sector over the next three years, the Presidential Committee on Green Growth said on Tuesday.
The investment marks a 48.2 percent increase from the 15.1 trillion won invested during the past three years, Yonhap News Agency reported.
The committee will allocate 9.9 trillion won for clean energy; 5.3 trillion won for hybrid and electric vehicle development; and 4.3 trillion won for next-generational electric device development.
In a separate report from the Economic Times, the SK Group said it will invest 17.5 trillion won by 2020 to develop clean energy technologies.
The conglomerate, which is involved in crude oil refining and telecommunications, will allocate 4.5 trillion won to secure low-carbon energy, including solar, biofuel and rechargeable battery.
Meanwhile, 4.2 trillion won will be used to establish a smart grid that will improve energy efficiency by electronically monitoring electricity flow in the power grid.
The remaining funds will then be used to finance the development of innovative technologies, including bio businesses.
SK Group's green efforts will help boost South Korea's independency to 13 percent by 2013, from 6 percent in 2008. South Korea is the world's fifth largest crude oil buyer and the second largest buyer of liquefied natural gas.
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak emphasized that the civilian sector and the development of original technology are crucial to the government's campaign for low-carbon and green growth.
"We should develop all material related with green technology and advance into the global market with 100 percent of our own technology. In the era of green growth, we should make original technologies," he reiterated.
The government aims to put South Korea in the forefront of the global fight against climate change. It revealed a plan to cut the county's carbon emissions by 30 percent in 2020, a 4 percent decrease from levels projected in 2005.
The government also devised a five-year green growth plan in 2009 that calls for 2 percent of the country's annual gross domestic product to be spent on the development of green businesses and projects.
South Korea's green market will surpass the value of the construction market, currently worth 2.5 trillion won, by 2020, the presidential committee predicted.
To support Mr. Lee's green growth initiatives, the National Assembly passed the Basic Act on Low-Carbon and Green Growth in January this year.
The law requires the government to set concrete targets and a systematic plan for national green growth. It also set specific stipulations on climate change and an energy target management system, greenhouse gas emission reduction targets, a chief greenhouse gas information center, a low-carbon transport plan and a related tax system.
SOURCE: APEC VC Korea
