Korea to utilize more renewable energy

Korea’s dependency on renewable energy is likely to rise to 12 percent of its total electricity supply by 2027.

According to the draft of the 6th Basic Plan for Long-Term Electricity Supply and Demand for 2013 to 2027, the ministry will increase the total electricity generation capacity to 130 million kilowatts by 2027, a 20- to 30-kilowatt increase from the previous plan, to iron out an electricity shortage issue.

To achieve the electricity supply goal, the sixth biannual plan will seek to increase dependency on renewable energy and thermal power plants, while leaving blank the dependency on nuclear power plants.
Currently, nuclear power plants generate about 30 percent of the nation’s electricity supply and the next plan is supposed to increase the share of nuclear power.

Industry watchers forecast the new government is unlikely to seek building more nuclear power plants as the presidential transition team has claimed it is most important to ensure nuclear power plant safety.

On the other hand, the sixth biannual plan has also set the electricity demand target at 111 million kilowatts by 2027 and kept the rate of reserves at 22 percent of the total electricity demand. It added the ministry will develop a variety of measures to curb electricity demand and therefore cut 12 percent of the target demand by 2027.

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