Voluntary Agreement

The voluntary agreement (VA) for energy conservation and GHG reduction, a joint programme between the government and industry, is managed by MOCIE and the Ministry of Environment. A company intending to join the agreement submits a firm action plan within three months of submitting to KEMCO a letter of intent, specifying their energy consumption and GHG emission reduction target. The action plan must contain information on the operating organisation, energy efficiency enhancement target, GHG emission reduction target, and detailed process design. After evaluation of the action plan by KEMCO, the qualified company and KEMCO conclude the VA contract. A company which joins the agreement will be supported by low interest loans and tax incentives for energy conservation and GHG reduction. Technological support as well as public relations promotion for the company will be offered. In addition, a monitoring method and achievement index to measure the level of implementation will be developed to encourage the participation of as many companies as possible. The VA record shows that as of 2000, the number of companies involved in VAs totalled 212 in the fields of steel, chemical, textile, paper, ceramics, and the food industry.