East Asia at a turning point

In September 2025, INETTT members NEXT group, Agora Energy China and Agora Energiewende, and Renewable Energy Institute co-hosted the East Asia Roundtable on Renewable Energy and Industry Decarbonisation in Seoul. The event brought together leading experts, policymakers and industry representatives from South Korea, China and Japan to address the region’s most pressing energy, industry and climate challenges.

Despite persistent historical tensions and diverse institutional and geostrategic orientations, the three countries share an interconnection through technological innovation, integrated supply chains and common decarbonisation imperatives. The roundtable underscored that while obstacles remain, East Asia has the potential to emerge as a global leader in clean energy and industrial transformation – if it can turn regional competition into mutually beneficial collaboration.

Common barriers and drivers of change

Participants at the Seoul roundtable highlighted the immense scale of the challenge. Across the region, economies remain heavily reliant on coal-based power generation and energy-intensive industries, even as global markets and international policies demand rapid change. The urgency for transformation is driven not only by the escalating climate crisis but also by the reconfiguration of global trade norms, exemplified by measures like the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and rising international demand for clean, low-carbon supply chains.

Energy security and climate action are now at the forefront of national and regional policy agendas. As all three countries pursue net-zero emission targets, the energy transition has emerged as a strategic domain for cooperation, with direct implications for industrial restructuring, supply chain resilience and clean technologies. Across sessions, several challenges emerged, including grid bottlenecks that limit renewables expansion, local acceptance issues – from solar siting to wind projects – and cost-sharing dilemmas between producers, consumers and governments.

While economic interests may not always align, South Korea, China and Japan share significant complementarities. The region also benefits from powerful drivers for accelerating change: strong domestic policy commitment, innovation capacity and growing pressure from international markets that increasingly demand clean energy solutions.

National priorities and next steps

South Korea has made progress in renewable energy, with solar PV as the most practical short-term solution given land and grid constraints. Offshore wind is expected to play a central role in the long-term energy mix, though permitting delays and local opposition require institutional reform. The power sector faces spatial imbalances, with abundant generation in southwestern coastal areas and concentrated demand in the capital region, necessitating expansion of extra-high-voltage transmission and high-voltage direct current (HVDC) networks. Flexibility also depends on energy storage deployment, demand response programs, and leveraging RE100 industrial parks to align supply and demand. In industry, weak carbon pricing and limited investment in sectors like petrochemicals require strengthening the national emissions trading system (ETS), clear decarbonisation roadmaps and support mechanisms such as carbon contracts for difference.

Meanwhile, China has rapidly expanded solar and wind capacity, alongside breakthroughs in battery storage and electric vehicles, establishing itself as a global leader in clean energy deployment. Coal, however, remains the backbone of China’s energy system, particularly in power generation, creating an urgent need for phased reduction targets and a carefully managed transition. One of China’s central challenges – and opportunities – is grid integration of variable renewables, especially distributed solar PV. Renewable-rich western provinces generate vast amounts of solar and wind power, but the highest demand lies in the industrialised coastal regions. Bridging this gap will require systemic reforms, including cost-effective expansion of ultra-high-voltage transmission lines, the development of smart grids and virtual power plants and the deployment of advanced energy storage solutions. China’s progress will also depend on reforms to its distribution systems and the introduction of local trading mechanisms to enable more flexible renewable integration. Industrial decarbonisation is challenged by coal-based steelmaking and petrochemicals, demanding a stronger carbon pricing regime including expanded emissions trading coverage, clear regulatory signals and robust cost-sharing mechanisms. Managing stranded assets via industrial restructuring in coal-dependent regions will be essential to ensure a just transition.

Furthest East, Japan has developed strong solar capacity, although rooftop solar, agri-PV and other distributed generation offer additional untapped potential. Offshore wind is being promoted as a long-term growth area, yet rising costs and licensing complexity make current support and regulatory designs insufficient. Local acceptance challenges remain; it is thus essential to strengthen public understanding of the benefits of renewables. Additionally, Japan’s nine-region monopoly system limits flexibility, making HVDC subsea links and transmission pricing reforms essential. Curtailment in solar-heavy regions can be mitigated through distributed renewables, storage and demand-side flexibility via market mechanisms. Industrial decarbonisation depends on shifting steel production to direct reduced iron with electric arc furnaces, scaling recycling and bio-feedstocks in petrochemicals and complementing subsidies with regulatory and market frameworks.

A shared regional vision

The roundtable discussions made clear that the path forward for East Asia cannot be pursued by individual countries in isolation. Technical fixes alone will not suffice. Instead, what is required is a collaborative, multi-faceted approach that integrates technical, political, social and economic solutions. Long-term roadmaps, predictable policy frameworks and collaboration between governments, industry and civil society are essential. 

One of the strongest takeaways from the roundtable was the need to reframe the costs of the transition as long-term strategic investments. For East Asia, the energy transition is both a climate imperative and an opportunity to position its industries at the forefront of the global low-carbon economy. Establishing regional standards for green steel and petrochemicals, coupled with joint R&D on technologies like hydrogen, carbon capture and advanced storage, can help balance competition with collaboration: what participants described as “coopetition.” 

By leveraging their complementary strengths and pooling resources through joint investments in innovation, infrastructure and coordinated policy frameworks, the three countries can unlock politically plausible and mutually beneficial opportunities for collaboration. The Seoul roundtable marked an important step in reframing East Asia’s future, shifting the perspective from three parallel national transitions to a vision of collective regional leadership in the global clean energy transformation. 

Building on this momentum, NEXT group, Agora and REI will continue to foster spaces for dialogue, knowledge exchange and collective problem-solving. By working together, the three countries can turn their industrial legacy into a foundation for clean energy leadership, forging a more resilient, sustainable and globally competitive East Asian economy for generations to come.