South Korean politician calls for investigation of biomass energy material imported from Indonesia

Associated Press

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — A South Korean National Assembly member has called for a moratorium on wood pellet imports from Indonesia and an investigation into South Korea’s biomass use after government data and satellite analysis linked the country’s biomass imports to deforestation in Indonesia. In South Korea, biomass has grown to become the second-largest source of renewable energy. More than 80% of its main raw material — wood pellets — depends on imports, according to a National Assembly audit report from October 2024. A growing number of those wood pellets come from the vast tropical archipelago nation of Indonesia.