Characterization of the life cycle carbon footprint of the automobile industry in the Republic of Korea by environmentally extended input-output model

Abstract

The automobile industry is a major economic driver in Republic of Korea (Korea). However, little is known about its climate change contribution. This study estimates the direct and indirect greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions of the Korean automobile industry for the first time, by using a 2017 environmentally extended input-output (EEIO) model integrated by energy balance, GHG inventory and input-output table of 2017. The results show that the final demand of Korean automobile industry led to 8.4% of national GHG emissions in 2017, mostly because of indirect emissions embodied in the supply chain. The study also found that the Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3 emissions on average accounted for 3.0%, 2.9%, and 94.7%, respectively. This highlights the contribution of the upstream supply chain such as primary metals (40.9%) and electricity (32.5%) when assessing the GHG emissions. Finally, the study underscores that carbon taxes could have a significant impact on the competitiveness of automobile export. Overall, this study provides valuable insights on countermeasures by identifying the GHG emissions characteristics of the automobile industry. The results of the study could be used to develop policies and strategies to reduce the GHG emissions and promote sustainable practices in the Korean automobile industry.