KT is joining hands with Tokyo Electron Korea to push a renewable energy direct power purchase agreement (hereafter direct PPA, Power Purchase Agreement) to achieve carbon neutrality.
KT said on the 11th that it signed a direct PPA business agreement in the presence of key officials from Tokyo Electron Korea. Under the agreement, starting in September, KT will supply renewable energy to major business sites such as Tokyo Electron Korea's Hwaseong office and the semiconductor manufacturing process research and development center.
A direct PPA is a method in which an energy supplier like KT provides electricity produced by a renewable energy generator directly to corporations without going through the power market. It has been in place since 2022 to encourage Korean corporations to participate in RE100. In September last year, KT received approval from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy for its status as a renewable electricity supplier under the Electric Utility Act, enabling it to participate in the direct PPA market.
KT will first supply 15 MW of renewable electricity and then expand the transaction scale to 50 MW. Fifty megawatts is enough to cover the annual power demand across Tokyo Electron Korea's relevant business sites.
In the semiconductor industry, as global customers' supply chain carbon reduction demands grow, switching business sites' power to renewable energy is emerging as a key competitive edge. In particular, for semiconductor equipment and materials corporations, securing a track record of renewable energy use is becoming important in line with customers' Scope 3 emissions management.
KT plans to expand the private direct PPA market based on its carbon-neutral platform "KT-Net Zero," which calculates and monitors greenhouse gas emissions.