The Lee Jae-myung government is risking the nation's destiny on unproven technologies such as hydrogen, wind, and solar power.

Despite precedents in the UK and Germany where carbon-neutral policies have led to economic collapse, economically powerful Korea is turning a blind eye, declaring war on coal and liquefied natural gas (LNG) in its aggressive push to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Lee Jae-myung Administration's Abandonment of Key Energy Sources... National Self-Harm

The newly inaugurated Lee Jae-myung administration is abandoning key energy sources that have not only powered its economy but also underpinned global industrial civilization alongside oil. This move is akin to national self-harm.

According to government plans, the share of LNG and coal in power generation will be drastically reduced from the current 60% to 20% by 2038, while the proportion of so-called renewable energies like wind and solar power is set to increase from the current 9% to 33%.

Until November 2025, the situation was relatively sensible. The Korean government expanded investment in regional LNG projects, increased strategic oil reserves, and directed energy conglomerates like SK Innovation and Korea Gas Corporation (KOGAS) to secure natural gas from Indonesia and Australia.

However, the government has since replaced this strategy with irrational targets. According to the government's plan, industrial sector carbon emissions will be reduced by 40% by 2030 compared to 2018, risking the nation's destiny on unproven technologies like hydrogen, wind, and solar power. This is not a rational transition but a reckless display of green virtue that jeopardizes national survival.

Replacing LNG with Hydrogen... A Dangerous Illusion of Falling into a 'Hydrogen Graveyard'

The most dangerous part of the government's new plan is the idea of replacing LNG with hydrogen. The plan to meet 7% of electricity needs with hydrogen and fuel cells is nothing but an illusion. The failed case studies, dubbed 'Hydrogen Graveyards' and published in 2025, attest to this.

Australia's $14 billion Central Queensland Hydrogen Project, a flagship project aimed at exports, collapsed this year after government support was withdrawn.

The UK multinational BP (British Petroleum) withdrew from Australia's 26-gigawatt (GW) renewable energy hub in the Pilbara region. Fortescue, a major cheerleader for green hydrogen in Australia, has also abandoned its project in Arizona, USA, and domestic projects.

In Germany, the LEAG (Lausitz Energie Bergbau AG) project, promoted as Europe's largest green energy hub, has been indefinitely postponed. ArcelorMittal's green steel plant in Bremen has also been halted despite offers of billions of euros in subsidies.

Foolish Environmental Policies... Will Lead to Job Losses and Factory Closures

If Korea pursues its new policies, the cost of this foolishness will manifest as job losses and factory closures. Over 30% of Korea's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) comes from the industrial sector, nearly double that of the UK.

Continuous and stable power is essential for the production of steel, petrochemicals, and semiconductors. Wind and solar power, which rely on weather conditions, cannot provide this.

The Lee Jae-myung government is risking the nation's destiny on unproven technologies such as hydrogen, wind, and solar power.

If green energy is introduced into the power grid, industries will have to bear the additional cost of backup power sources or, worse, scale back operations. We have already seen the outcome of this charade in Europe.

Germany, dubbed a green model nation, is facing a crisis of de-industrialization, with its industrial base collapsing at a rate of 4.5% as of 2024, coinciding with a multi-year trend of economic decline.

In the same year, industrial energy consumption in the UK decreased by 1.2% compared to 2023, reaching what the government described as "the lowest level of industrial consumption in 50 years."

The Bank of England has warned that "carbon-neutral policies are slowing down the global economy." The World Bank forecasts that the 2020s will be the decade with the lowest global growth rate since records began in the 1960s.

Whether this decline is intentional or a result of incompetence, the effects are predictable. Under a renewable energy-centric Korean power grid, large-scale materials industries such as POSCO's steel mills and Lotte's petrochemical plants, which compete on a low-margin, high-volume basis, could be the first to be sacrificed.

The approval of the Shinul 3 reactor and progress on small modular reactors (SMRs) are positive signs. Nuclear power is the only non-fossil fuel energy source that can provide the energy density and reliability required by the industrial economy.

However, let's face reality. It is impossible to bring nuclear power plants online fast enough to fill the enormous void created by the government's drastic reduction in fossil fuel use.

It is not too late. A change of direction is still possible. Korea achieved the 'Miracle on the Han River' by disregarding ideological trends and focusing on ruthless economic efficiency.

Now, the question the new administration must answer is: "Will they govern for the people, or will they cede sovereignty to international pseudo-scientific ideological groups that benefit neither workers nor manufacturers?" And they must realize that their new policies will not even benefit the 'Earth' they claim to be saving.

This column was first published on January 21, 2026, in the California Globe (www.californiaglobe.com) and was translated and revised in collaboration with the author by Park Seok-soon, Professor Emeritus at Ewha Womans University and a member of the CO2 Coalition.

Professor Park Seok-soon is currently serving as the Korean Ambassador for the Global Center for Climate Solutions (Clintel), Chairman of the Free Environment Forum, and operates the YouTube channel "Park Seok-soon's Environment TV."

◆ Vijay Jayaraj, Research Fellow at the CO2 Coalition

◆ Professor Emeritus Park Seok-soon, Ewha Womans University, Former Director of the National Institute of Environmental Research

Professor Park Seok-soon is currently serving as the Korean Ambassador for Clintel (Global Center for Climate Solutions), Chairman of the Free Environment Forum, and operates the YouTube channel "Park Seok-soon's Environment TV."