"KRW 34.2 Billion in Coal-Ammonia Co-Firing Power Generation Development Funds Lost Due to Government Policy Reversal"

Coal-Ammonia Co-Firing Power Generation Technology Development and Demonstration Projects
Deleted from Government-Supported Clean Hydrogen Power Generation Market
"Trust in Government Policy Lost... Reasonable Remedial Measures Needed"

Yoon Jaeok, a member of the People Power Party, is speaking at the Climate, Energy, Environment and Labor Committee briefing. Office of Yoon Jaeok

Due to the government's policy to phase out coal-fired power generation by 2040, plans for bidding on coal-ammonia co-firing power generation have been cancelled, resulting in a loss of KRW 34.2 billion that had previously been invested in related government-led technology development projects.

According to data submitted by Yoon Jaeok, a member of the People Power Party (representing Dalseo District, Daegu), from the Korea Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning on October 6, a total of KRW 15.6 billion in government funds and KRW 18.6 billion from the private sector—KRW 34.2 billion in total—had been invested in four projects under the "USC-Class Boiler Ammonia Co-Firing Power Generation Technology Development and Demonstration" initiative up to the point of their suspension.

The development of "coal-ammonia co-firing" technology was a project conducted according to the "First Basic Hydrogen Economy Implementation Plan" established by the Moon Jae-in administration in 2021. At that time, the government set the goal of applying 20% co-firing to more than half of coal-fired power plants by 2030, and of progressively increasing the ammonia co-firing ratio in order to achieve complete ammonia firing before 2050.

As a result, since April 2023, a joint public-private initiative involving 26 participants—including Korea Electric Power Corporation, the five power generation public enterprises, Doosan Enerbility, and various research institutions—had been engaged in basic technology development.

However, after the inauguration of the Lee Jaemyung administration, the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment abruptly cancelled the government-announced "Clean Hydrogen Power Generation Market Competitive Bidding" (3,000 GWh) on the very day of closing, October 17, 2025. Subsequently, without a re-announcement within the year, the technology development project budget was cut.

Following this, all four projects were discontinued after two rounds of special evaluations held in February and July of this year. Furthermore, in a revised notice announced for public comment in June 2026, the ministry excluded coal-ammonia co-firing entirely from the list of technologies eligible for support in the clean hydrogen power generation market.

Yoon Jaeok's office explained, "According to the special evaluation committee's comprehensive opinion that led to the project's discontinuation, the technology development up to that point had achieved ample results."

The special evaluation committee stated that "all quantitative goals and KPIs were met," and evaluated that "there was a ripple effect in terms of securing carbon-neutral technologies for the power generation sector and revitalizing related industries. Furthermore, economic ripple effects—such as overseas market entry—are anticipated in both domestic and international markets for ammonia co-firing and complete ammonia firing." With regard to the cause of the discontinuation, the committee clarified that "it is difficult to view the suspension as being attributable to the research and development institutes."

Additionally, the “Clean Thermal Power Sector Agreement Amendment Review Committee,” which convened in January of this year, cited as grounds for suspension that "business implementation and operation of ammonia combustion are impossible due to permit holds and bidding market cancellations stemming from government policy." The ministry's policy is that coal-ammonia co-firing power generation will no longer be considered for bidding, since it does not align with the government's policy to phase out coal-fired power by 2040.

On this, Yoon Jaeok commented, "A project that had been designated as a policy direction by the government and pushed forward for a substantial period, even involving private companies, was scrapped overnight simply because the administration changed." He continued, "Private companies trusted the government's policy and invested KRW 18.6 billion—a significant sum—yet due to the policy reversal, the domestic market for utilizing this newly developed technology has disappeared. If faith in government policy collapses, which company will trust the government and willingly invest in long-term energy technology development going forward?"

Yoon stressed, "To prevent the direction of national energy and hydrogen policies from being fundamentally shaken each time there is an administration change, the second basic hydrogen economy implementation plan must be promptly devised. In addition, reasonable remedial measures should be prepared for private companies that inevitably suffered losses due to policy changes." He added, "It is essential to make clear that energy technology development is not a project for a particular administration, but a long-term investment in the future of the nation."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.