JEJU-DO < invest Korea

The surrounding ocean, the warm sunshine beating down, the wind blowing at times gently while at others fiercely, and the waves fluctuating in the wind. These are the gifts bestowed by Jeju Island’s natural environment. At the same time, these elements constitute Jeju’s abundant supply of renewable energy, and based on these natural resources, Jeju has long been engaged in R&D and the utilization of renewable energy.

Wind farms on Jeju Island currently generate 290 MW of electricity (onshore and offshore combined), while solar panels generate 260 MW, accounting for the two largest shares of renewable energy on the island. Other renewable energy sources include biogas from animal manure, waste products such as waste wood, solar heat, and wave power which can generate electricity. Currently wave power generation is being implemented on Jeju as a pilot project for substantiation. As of 2019, renewable energy sources accounted for 14.03% of Jeju’s electricity system, well above the national average of 8%. Utilizing a variety of natural resources, Jeju Island boasts the country’s highest penetration of renewable energy.

Jeju Island is specialized in the wind power industry due to its solid institutional foundation. The Special Act on the Establishment of Jeju Special Self-Governing Province and the Development of Free International City transferred the licensing authority for wind power projects on the island to the Jeju Governor from the Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy. The province also established a separate licensing standard reflecting regional characteristics, enacted ordinances on district designation, and issued relevant public notifications. District designation refers to the preliminary investigation on candidate sites for wind power generation and the eventual designation. It offers a legal foundation for recruiting designated villages, and for conducting evaluation and deliberation of wind farm candidate sites. This system has taken root for the first time on Jeju and similarly the planned location system for renewable energy has been introduced on a national scale but was fully utilized due to the revision of related laws.

Though renewable energy industries keep expanding quantitatively and qualitatively, there remain some limitations to derivative industries or services. For derivative industries, maintenance of power generation facilities accounts for a large part. For manufacturing industries with high value added or the power generation industry, however, financial, economic, managerial, and legal services associated with the industries still require institutionalization and nurturing of human resources. Nevertheless, experts believe that the renewable energy market has room for scalability and promoting derivative industries requires not only resolving technical problems but also securing budgets and institutional support from the central government.