South Korea’s trade ministry has announced a plan to phase out over 75% of the country’s coal-fired power plants by 2039, an ambitious effort to align the country with global decarbonization trends and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Introduced last week alongside the establishment of a “Coal Power Transition Taskforce,” the initiative reflects the ROK’s recognition of the need to transition from coal, which it currently relies on for roughly a third of its energy needs.