The government has set the total amount of greenhouse gas emissions rights allowed for Korea's 591 large-size companies at slightly over 538 million tons for 2018. 

The Cabinet approved the plan on Tuesday. 

The amount is the average emissions rights allocated annually between 2015 and 2017 which was the first phase of the government's greenhouse gas reduction road map established in 2014.

Officials were supposed to finalize the emissions ceiling for the second phase term of 2018 to 2020 by June. But due to changes in the new administration's energy policy framework, only next year's emissions quota has been announced for now. 

Emissions rights for the full 2018 to 2020 period will be allocated by the first half of next year.