Just Transition Korean Government Should Pass Public Renewables Act Without Delay
At its 15th Asia-Pacific Regional Conference, PSI affiliates adopted a resolution calling on the Korean government to urgently pass the Public Renewable Energy Act. The resolution highlights the threat of 16,000 job losses and economic damage from the planned closure of coal-fired power plants, while condemning the government’s push for privatisation. It supports the campaign for a public pathway to energy transition that secures workers’ rights, protects local communities, and ensures energy remains a public good.
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Jyotsna Singh
RESOLUTION #3: THE KOREAN GOVERNMENT AND NATIONAL ASSEMBLY MUST PASS THE PUBLIC RENEWABLES ACT IMMEDIATELY!
The 15th Asia Pacific Regional Conference (APRECON) Meeting in Kathmandu, Nepal, 8 - 11 September 2025
NOTES the situation in Korea, where the government’s policy to close 40 out of 58 coal-fired power stations by 2038 is expected to result in 16,000 job losses, including 2,000 irregular workers, as well as an economic loss of around 5.5 trillion won in regions with a high concentration of coal-fired power stations,
CONDEMNS the Korean government for failing to propose any measures and for seizing upon the energy transition as an opportunity for privatisation at this critical moment, when measures to secure workers’ employment and ensure the sustainability of local communities are urgently needed, particularly CONCERNS that the government is allowing private renewable energy to fill the gap left by the closure of predominantly publicly owned coal-fired power stations, given that over 90 per cent of Korea’s renewable energy facilities, as well as 92.8 per cent of approved offshore wind power capacity, are already privately owned,
SUPPORTS the KPTU's campaign for the Framework Act on Expansion of Public Renewable Energy (Public Renewable Energy Act), carried out in collaboration with climate justice groups, to ensure the right to energy, support workers and local communities most affected by the closure of coal-fired power stations, and promote the public pathway approach,
URGES the Korean government to recognise that the public pathway approach and remunicipalisation of energy are irreversible global trends and calls on the government to join this global trend by passing the Public Renewable Energy Act.
Submitted by Korean Public Service and Transport Workers’ Union (KPTU)