Recently, the Korea Ministry of Climate and Environment (tentative name; official name: Ministry of Environment) signed a "Business Agreement on Assistance for Calculating Greenhouse Gas Scope 3 Emissions in the Shipbuilding Industry" with six major shipbuilders: HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, HD Hyundai Samho, Samsung Heavy Industries, K Shipbuilding, and Hanwha Ocean, at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI). The Korean government has united leading domestic shipbuilders to systematically calculate and manage greenhouse gas emissions generated across the entire value chain of the shipbuilding industry, aiming to establish an institutional foundation for reducing emissions.
Greenhouse gas emissions are generally categorized into three scopes under the GHG Protocol based on measurement scope:
Scope 1 (direct emissions): Emissions from sources directly owned or controlled by an enterprise/organization.
Scope 2 (indirect emissions): Indirect emissions from the generation of purchased electricity, heat, steam, or cooling.
Scope 3 (other indirect emissions, also known as carbon footprint): Other indirect emissions in the value chain not covered by Scope 2, including upstream and downstream activities.
Given that the shipbuilding industry is closely linked to various upstream and downstream sectors such as steel, equipment, logistics, and transportation, the Ministry and the shipbuilding industry plan to first establish a calculation basis for Scope 3 that reflects the characteristics of the shipbuilding industry, and build an effective management system applicable to industrial sites.
Under this agreement, the six major shipbuilders will, based on supply chain characteristics, emission scope classification, and data availability, study, analyze, and calculate the data and methods required for major greenhouse gas emission sources. Additionally, they will collaborate with the Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute (KEITI), an official agency under the Ministry, to develop plans to enhance on-site applicability.
The Ministry plans to gradually expand the Scope 3 emission calculation assistance program to other major Korean export industries such as energy and general machinery by 2028, starting with the shipbuilding industry as a pilot.
Lee Ho-hyun, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Climate and Environment, stated: "The rapidly changing international situation recently indirectly demonstrates the necessity of building a low-carbon energy ecosystem that is less dependent on fossil fuels. The core strategy for sustainable corporate management is to establish a solid energy security system unaffected by external variables. This cooperation on Scope 3 emission calculation in the shipbuilding industry is an important starting point for enhancing the supply chain competitiveness of Korea's shipbuilding industry. The government will actively support close cooperation between relevant agencies and the shipbuilding industry to lay the foundation for on-site application."
It is reported that the Korean shipbuilding industry has already taken preemptive measures regarding Scope 3 management, which requires disclosure of carbon emissions. HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering is actively pursuing R&D and commercialization in the field of low-carbon and eco-friendly ships, and in 2022 it calculated and disclosed its Scope 3 emissions, becoming the first Korean shipbuilder to do so.
In 2022, Samsung Heavy Industries developed the "Scope 3 Ship Navigation Carbon Emission Reduction Research Methodology" for the first time in the Korean shipbuilding industry, and obtained reliability certification from the Korean Standards Association (KSA). In 2023, it also disclosed the calculated amount using this methodology for the first time. The methodology calculates the contribution of eco-friendly ships delivered by shipbuilders to shipowners in reducing carbon emissions. Based on the EEDI (Energy Efficiency Design Index) value of eco-friendly ships designed and built using various low-carbon technologies, Samsung Heavy Industries calculates the carbon emission reduction contribution by comparing the improvement margin above the EEDI permissible value stipulated by the IMO.
In March 2023, Korea's three major shipbuilders (HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, Samsung Heavy Industries, Hanwha Ocean) signed a Joint Development Project Agreement (JDA) with the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) and the Korean Register (KR) on "Standardization of Scope 3 Calculation in the Shipbuilding Industry." This was the first effort to establish a Scope 3 calculation standard in the Korean shipbuilding industry.
