South Korea announces plan for hydrogen-based economy
Seoul, Aug 12, 2005 -- BBC Monitoring
South Korea aims to become a functioning hydrogen economy by
2040, with a sizeable part of its transportation, power generation
and household appliances operating on eco-friendly fuel cells, the
government said Friday [12 August].
In a meeting of economic ministers chaired by Minister
of Finance and Economy Han Duck-soo, the government signed off on
the ambitious proposal, which calls for more than half of all cars
to operate on fuel cells by the target date. The blueprint, drawn
up by the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Economy, also calls
for 22 per cent of all power generation and 23 per cent of
electricity used by homes to be run on fuel cells. Fuel cells work
by harnessing the almost limitless energy generated by separating
electrons and protons from hydrogen molecules and converting it
into electricity to power cars, run factories and operate
machines. The plan is part of a long-term government effort to
establish a clean alternative source of energy for the time when
the world's fossil fuel resources are expected to dry up around
the middle of this century. "South Korea relies heavily on fossil
fuel, making it imperative to take serious action to develop
energy resources that will not dry up," a government expert said.
He added that the United States, Japan and European Union were
already committed to developing this technology, which could
become a 95bn-dollar global business if a technological
breakthrough is made by 2010. If all goes according to plan,
hydrogen-based fuel cells will account for 8 per cent of the gross
domestic product by 2040, the official said, adding that up to a
million new jobs and a 20 per cent reduction in carbon dioxide can
be expected.
Source: Yonhap news agency, Seoul, in English 0724 gmt 12 Aug
05
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