The government has begun drawing up a long-term blueprint for climate and energy technology to address climate and social changes over the next 10 to 20 years. It also unveiled an "energy technology diffusion roadmap" that will serve as the foundation for the long-term strategy.
The Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment said on the 2nd that it held the second Climate and Energy Technology Strategic Investment Council of 2026, presided over by Vice Minister Lee Ho-hyun. Launched in July, the council is a public-private body that reviews the basic direction of technology development projects in the climate and energy sector, along with planning, evaluation, management and investment coordination.
The council reviewed the climate and energy portion of the "2028 National R&D Investment Direction and Standards," which the Ministry of Science and ICT must establish by March next year. A ministry official said the investment direction "contains considerations drawn from the 5th Energy Technology Development Plan and the energy technology diffusion strategic roadmap, aimed at responding to the climate crisis and accelerating the energy transition."
The energy technology diffusion roadmap is a plan the ministry drew up this year to systematically secure the future technologies essential to achieving the energy transition in the climate and energy sector. Designed to support implementation of the 2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), it breaks down technology acquisition plans by year in each field, with 2030 and 2035 as reference points.
The roadmap is divided into 10 fields across four sectors: power generation, grids, consumption and transition. Tandem solar cells are targeted for commercialization in 2028, with generation efficiency to be raised to 35% by 2030. In wind power, the design of large turbines of 20 megawatts or more — expected to lead the market — is to be completed by 2030, with commercialization finished by 2033. Demonstration and pilot operation of flexible output control at large nuclear plants is scheduled between 2029 and 2034.
In energy storage systems (ESS), a project to commercialize sodium-battery ESS and a demonstration project for low-cost, high-efficiency, large-capacity vanadium batteries are to be completed by 2031, after which work will move to next-generation ESS demonstration projects. In hydrogen, a demonstration project for a 50-megawatt green hydrogen production plant is planned for 2030 to 2034.
In line with the roadmap, the council also decided to form an advisory committee to set the direction of technology development over the next 10 to 20 years. The committee's purpose is to forecast future social and economic changes and then propose technology development directions that can support structural transition and innovation.
The advisory committee is divided into subcommittees on future outlook, clean power, heat and fuel conversion, and future power grids. Each subcommittee will examine future technologies to be secured in areas such as renewable energy, small modular reactors (SMRs) and ESS, as well as the government's role in advanced fields including smart power grids, direct-current transmission and distribution, and superconducting transmission.
"Climate and energy R&D projects are a key means of using technology to support the implementation of government policy and the development of future industries," the vice minister said. "We will clarify investment priorities by examining both policy alignment and technology and market outlooks, and over the long term we will further strengthen strategic focus and innovation."
