Seoul: South Korea will join hands with Cambodia to distribute electric motorcycles and charging stations in the Southeast Asian nation, marking Seoul's first-ever international carbon emission reduction project, the industry ministry said Monday. The project aims to reduce 680,000 tons of carbon emissions in Cambodia and represents South Korea's first international carbon reduction initiative established under the Paris Agreement.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the project was officially approved by the Cambodian government on Friday. Under the Paris Agreement, a host country can sell internationally transferred mitigation outcomes (ITMOs), or carbon credits, to a buyer country in exchange for investments, support for carbon reduction capacity building, and access to related technologies. Of the 680,000 tons of projected carbon reductions, carbon credits worth 400,000 tons will be transferred to Korea and used for the country's nationally determined contribution for achieving carbon neutrality.

South Korea has pledged to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent from 2018 levels by 2030 and to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. The ministry stated that Seoul will also work to expand cooperation with Phnom Penh in the transportation sector to further reduce carbon emissions. An official at the ministry remarked that by combining Cambodia's commitment to carbon reduction with the technological expertise and investment of Korean companies, the project can evolve into a win-win intergovernmental cooperation model for the two countries.