  This integrated assessment modeling research analyzes what Korea's 2050
carbon neutrality would require for the national energy system and the role of
the power sector concerning the availability of critical mitigation
technologies. Our scenario-based assessments show that Korea's current policy
falls short of what the nation's carbon-neutrality ambition would require.
Across all technology scenarios examined in this study, extensive and rapid
energy system transition is imperative, requiring the large-scale deployment of
renewables and carbon capture & storage (CCS) early on and negative emission
technologies (NETs) by the mid-century. Importantly, rapid decarbonization of
the power sector that goes with rapid electrification of end-uses seems to be a
robust national decarbonization strategy. Furthermore, we contextualize our
net-zero scenario results using policy costs, requirements for natural
resources, and the expansion rate of zero-carbon technologies. We find that the
availability of nuclear power lowers the required expansion rate of renewables
and CCS, alleviating any stress on terrestrial and geological systems. By
contrast, the limited availability of CCS without nuclear power necessarily
demands a very high penetration of renewables and significantly high policy
compliance costs, which would decrease the feasibility of achieving the carbon
neutrality target.
