South Korea Reconsiders Coal-to-LNG Conversion Rule Amid Fears of Delayed Phase-Out

The South Korean government is reconsidering its 'one-for-one conversion' rule for converting coal-fired cogeneration plants to liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities. The current system awards bonus points to plans proposing to build LNG cogeneration plants with the same generation capacity as existing coal plants, but changes may limit recognition of new capacity increases.

The Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment is reviewing the 'same-capacity, same-entity' principle, which treats closing a 100 MW coal plant and building an LNG facility as only adding 400 MW of new capacity. However, if this principle is not applied, the increase would be 500 MW.

Experts warn that these changes could delay the phase-out of coal-fired plants, which are a major source of carbon emissions. District energy operators have been preparing to convert their facilities to LNG under the current rules, but may now choose to extend the lifespan of their coal plants instead.