Gov't to spend 540 bln won on 'green IT' industry

By Lee Joon-seung
SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Yonhap) -- The government said Wednesday that it plans to spend
540.1 billion won (US$402.3 million) in the next five years to fuel the
development of South Korea's eco-friendly information technology (IT) industry.

The plan aims to help enhance overall energy efficiency in the rapidly growing
industry and help local companies expand overseas market share in the face of
tougher environmental protection requirements, the Ministry of Knowledge Economy
said.
IT exports made up roughly 34 percent of South Korean exports in 2007, but new
restrictions on the use of hazardous substances in electronic products announced
by countries like China and the European Union require countermeasures to be
taken.
The industry also used 17 percent of all electricity generated in the country,
with personal computers, digital TVs and set-top boxes wasting an estimated 500
billion won worth of standby power each year.
"The goal is to make products that are world best in terms of energy efficiency
and are manufactured under eco-friendly conditions using non-hazardous parts,"
said Ryu Su-geun, head of the ministry's electronics and IT policy division.
He said such products can support exports while at the same time creating a new
'green' value chain that can fuel demand for such products in homes, buildings
and industrial complexes.
The official added that state support will be centered on research and
development of hightech IT products, building the necessary infrastructure to
facilitate demand for such goods and training of experts.
The ministry in charge of the country's industrial and energy policies, said of
the total to be used until 2013, 77.3 billion won will be spent this year, with
efforts underway to double spending so funds can be injected to generate demand
for light emitting diodes.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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