South Korea seeks to reduce its use of energy by 4.1 percent from its business-as-usual level in 2017, which will help it cut its greenhouse gas emissions, the government said Tuesday.

Under a new five-year plan ― from 2013-2017 ― the government will seek to keep the annual growth of the country’s total energy use under 1 percent, which will help reduce the country’s overall use of energy to 218.2 billion tons of oil equivalents (TOEs) from the anticipated BAU level of 227.5 billion TOEs, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

At present, the country imports nearly all of its energy. Imports of raw materials, including energy, currently account for nearly 60 percent of the country’s overall imports, the ministry has said.

“While seeking to better prepare the country for recurring oil price fluctuations, as well as power shortages that have recently become a serious problem, the fifth basic plan on the rationalization of energy use seeks to promote advanced management and use of energy that utilize new technologies and markets,” the ministry said in a press release. (Yonhap)