As indicated in the “Plans to Strengthen Competitiveness of the Renewable Energy Industry” last year, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (the “MOTIE”) has published the “Operating Guidelines on Supporting Low Carbon Solar PV Modules” (MOTIE Notification No. 2020-86), which implemented the Solar PV Carbon Certification System on July 22, 2020.  

The Solar PV Carbon Certification System is a process whereby the total amount of greenhouse gas emission per output unit (1kW) is estimated as follows for the entire manufacturing process for solar PV modules: 
 

Based on the estimated greenhouse gas emission, each solar PV module is assigned one of three grades, and the MOTIE plans to provide the following new incentives for solar PV modules with lower greenhouse gas emission in RPS fixed-price bidding and government-backed projects, starting from as early as this year.  
 

This Solar PV Carbon Certification System is expected to, among other things, (i) contribute to the global trend of reducing greenhouse gas emission, (ii) encourage the introduction of manufacturing processes with low carbon emission, which would further reduce the unit price for solar PV modules, and (iii) facilitate the use of parts and materials of various suppliers, enhancing manufacturers’ capability to respond to unexpected supply and demand risks (e.g., COVID-19).  

Details on how incentives will be provided for solar PV modules will be finalized in an upcoming MOTIE notification (expected to be announced soon).