온실가스 배출량 산정 대상이 기업을 넘어 공급망 전반으로 확장되고, 이차전지 업계 대응이 우선적으로 필요하다는 데에 공감대가 형성됨에 따라 환경부와 한국환경산업기원이 이차전지 산업의 탄소경쟁력 강화를 위한 온실가스 배출량 산정 안내서를 발간했다.
Greenhouse gas emissions calculation targets expand beyond companies to the entire supply chain
Reflecting EU Battery Law Requirements… Secondary Battery Industry Utilization ↑ As the scope of greenhouse gas emissions calculations expands beyond companies to the entire supply chain and a consensus is formed that the secondary battery industry needs to respond first, the Ministry of Environment and the Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute have published a guide to greenhouse gas emissions calculations to strengthen the carbon competitiveness of the secondary battery industry.
The Ministry of Environment and the Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute announced on April 5 that they published a guide to calculating greenhouse gas (Scope 3) emissions that reflects the characteristics of the secondary battery industry.
It is a type of greenhouse gas emissions, and is measured based on the target and scope of greenhouse gas measurements. Scope 3 refers to indirect emissions that occur in the company's value chain outside the company's ownership and control.
Recently, as the scope of greenhouse gas emission calculations has expanded beyond companies to the entire supply chain, including the institutionalization of environmental, social and transparent management (ESG) disclosure standards in the international community, supply chain due diligence, and the carbon footprint system in the European Union (EU) Battery Act, the need for advance preparation and government support for Korean companies with a high proportion of exports and manufacturing is increasing.
Accordingly, the Ministry of Environment announced that the 'European Union (EU) Battery Act' passed the parliament (June 14, 2023) amid the successive announcement of 'Environmental, Social, and Transparent Management (ESG)' disclosure standards of major exporting countries.Based on the consensus that the secondary battery industry's response was necessary as a priority, the 'Scope 3 Emissions Calculation Council' was operated on a pilot basis with the three secondary battery companies (LG Energy Solution, SK On, and Samsung SDI) from July of last year to the end of that year.
This guide is the result of the 'Scope 3 Emissions Calculation Council' that has been in operation so far, and was created through analysis of each company's calculation methods and expert advice.
The guide covers the method of establishing a Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions inventory and calculation methodologies for 15 topics (categories), including products and services, transportation, and distribution, based on the internationally accepted greenhouse gas emissions calculation standard (GHG Protocol).
In particular, the requirements of the 'EU Battery Act' have been reflected to increase the usability of the secondary battery industry, and the category-specific emission calculation methodology has been made so that it can be used as a reference in other industries besides the secondary battery industry based on actual calculation cases.
Following the publication of this guidebook specialized for the secondary battery industry, the Ministry of Environment plans to select one major domestic export industry this year and publish a related guidebook within the next year.
This guide to calculating greenhouse gas (Scope 3) emissions for the secondary battery industry will be available in full on the Ministry of Environment and Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute websites from April 5.
Jang Gi-bok, the Ministry of Environment’s Green Transition Policy Director, said, “We hope that this guidebook, which we created on a pilot basis together with the secondary battery industry, will be utilized in various ways not only in related industries but also in other industries,” and “We will not spare support in various ways so that our export companies, following secondary batteries, can immediately respond to international ‘environment, society, and transparency (ESG)’-related regulations.”