Korea Leaders Summit 2026 CoREi Session
“Leveraging AI for the Energy Transition and Corporate Carbon Reduction Strategies”

Corporate Renewable Energy Initiative (CoREi), jointly operated by Korea Sustainability Investing Forum (KoSIF), UN Global Compact Network Korea, and WWF-Korea, co- hosted Korea Leaders Summit 2026 – CoREi Session “Leveraging AI for the Energy Transition and Corporate Carbon Reduction Strategies” on Tuesday, November 4, at the Grand Hyatt Seoul.

The CoREi session opened with a special video message from Spencer Low, Head of Regional Sustainability, Google APAC. He emphasized the importance of looking at AI advancement and carbon reduction together, and shared his view that Korea should lead both AI and the green transition through strengths in semiconductors, batteries, and engineering. He offered three recommendations for Korean companies: “utilize AI to identify previously invisible assets, maximize the efficiency of the power grids they already have, and make variable power measurable and applicable for their own operations.” He also delivered the message that green transition goals can only be achieved when government, businesses, and suppliers take actions together.

Next, Jongseo Yim, Director of the Data & Information Center at the National Institute of Green Technology, presented on “Directions for Corporate Decarbonization and Energy Transition Using AI.” The presentation was structured around two pillars: the current state of AI-converged climate technologies, and shared growth between large companies and SMEs. Director Yim noted that amid shifting regulations such as mandatory disclosure, CBAM, and the Emissions Trading Scheme, data is what matters most. Sharing industry-specific examples of AI-based green technologies, he outlined three layers of constraints that limits AI-driven emissions reduction. Also, he proposed solutions including building data infrastructure, tailoring AI models to industrial sites, and a model in which large companies open part of their green AI data centers to their suppliers.

The next presentation featured a corporate case study by Jonghwan Um, Head of Sustainability Office and Vice President at SK Telecom. Pointing out that AI is both a driver of rising emissions and a means to reduce emissions, he introduced cases of carbon reduction using AI, as well as efforts to cut carbon emissions from AI models and data centers. Commenting that AI data centers consume more power and generate more heat than conventional data centers and therefore require a shift away from existing cooling methods, he mentioned options such as liquid cooling. He also advised that companies with distributed facilities can find it difficult to meet their renewable energy needs through self-generation alone, making external procurement such as PPAs necessary, along with a long-term strategy that aligns the timing of renewable energy procurement with business schedules. He concluded by emphasizing the need for a systematic ESG data management system in preparation for mandatory disclosure requirements.

Panel presentations followed. First, Sangheon Lee, Director of the Climate and Energy Policy Division at the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment, presented on “Strategies for a Sustainable Energy Transformation in the AI Era,” introducing seven of the Ministry’s ten key policy tasks related to the session’s theme. He stated that the Ministry will support companies’ green transition through various measures including early achievement of 100GW of renewable energy capacity, fostering a green industrial ecosystem, green finance and fiscal support, innovation of the national power grid, and reform of the electricity market.

Second, Jinsoo Kim, Professor in the Department of Earth Resources and Environmental Engineering at Hanyang University, presented on “Rising Electricity Demand and Accelerating Electrification Driven by Megaprojects and AI expansion.” He noted that while Korea’s annual electricity consumption in 2025 fell short of 600TWh, it is now projected to reach 850TWh due to massive new demand. Professor Kim pointed out that the key issue is growing uncertainty on both the demand and supply sides. He emphasized achieving carbon neutrality through “electrification,” which converts the 78% of Korea’s final energy that comes from fossil fuels and cannot be decarbonized into clean electricity. He added that the the AI era calls for effective procurement of carbon-free power, greater flexibility, and optimization.

Finally, Byunghwa Han, Executive Director at Eugene Investment & Securities, presented on “Changes in the Global Energy Market and the AI Era.” Director Han stressed the importance of using renewable energy to secure corporate sustainability in the AI era. He explained the case of renewable energy procurement in the United States along with its outlook. The panel presentations concluded with his emphasis on the need for an accelerated supply of renewable energy for AI data centers through utilizing ESS (Energy Storage Systems).

The panel discussion was moderated by Hyeae Kim, Chair of the Energy and Industrial Transition Subcommittee of the National Committee for Climate Crisis Response. Jongseo Yim (Director of the Data & Information Center at the National Institute of Green Technology), Jonghwan Um (Head of Sustainability Office and Vice President at SK Telecom), Sangheon Lee (Director of the Climate and Energy Policy Division at the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment), Jinsoo Kim (Professor in the Department of Earth Resources and Environmental Engineering at Hanyang University), and Byunghwa Han (Executive Director at Eugene Investment & Securities) joined as panelists and continued the discussion on sustainable corporate carbon reduction strategies using AI.

Inquiries: sihyeon.kim@kosif.org, syseo@kosif.org