Jeju Governor Wi Seong-gon proposed on September 15 that the island's offshore wind power be prioritized for connection to the national power grid, with plans to transmit generated electricity to demand areas such as the metropolitan region in the long term. The province is also pushing for the introduction of customized electricity rates tailored for heat pumps and vehicle-to-grid (V2G) systems to increase renewable energy consumption.
During a press conference at the '2026 Global Green Hydrogen Forum with Distributed Energy Forum' held at the Jeju International Convention Center, Governor Wi stated, "We will promote policies to prioritize the connection of Jeju's offshore wind power to the national grid."
Jeju has been the first region in South Korea to experience limitations in its power grid and output control due to the expansion of renewable energy. In the short term, the plan includes expanding energy storage systems (ESS), while in the medium to long term, the focus will be on increasing new electricity demand through green hydrogen, heat pumps, and electric vehicles.
However, Governor Wi noted that simply increasing electricity consumption within Jeju is insufficient to fully utilize renewable energy sources like offshore wind power. He emphasized the need to connect offshore wind power to the national grid and proposed a long-term plan to transmit generated electricity to demand areas via a high-voltage direct current (HVDC) network.
"Jeju has very favorable conditions for offshore wind power," he said, stressing the importance of persuading the government to connect it to the national grid to avoid wasting valuable resources.
He added, "While it may be hard to imagine in the next 5 to 10 years, we need to consider how to send the offshore wind power generated in Jeju to the metropolitan area in 30 years."
In addition to expanding the grid for transmitting electricity to the mainland, the province will also reform its electricity rate system to increase renewable energy consumption within Jeju. Plans include developing separate rate structures that reflect the characteristics of distributed energy resources like heat pumps and V2G.
This year, Jeju plans to invest a total of 34.4 billion won, including national and provincial funds, to distribute air-source heat pumps to 2,460 households. However, concerns have been raised that increasing contracted power due to heat pump installations will lead to higher basic charges, creating a mismatch between the distribution policy and the rate system.
Governor Wi pointed out, "There is no rate plan that can be selected according to the characteristics of heat pumps," adding that it is not appropriate to encourage the use of heat pumps while making electricity more expensive.
Jeju plans to develop a dedicated rate system for heat pumps and distributed energy through research and consulting. He noted, "To participate in V2G, vehicles need to be connected, and both the vehicle and charger are expensive. A price difference of 10 to 20 won per kWh is not enough to motivate action. We will find a rate system that creates a significant price difference to encourage real participation."
Additionally, Jeju is pursuing plans to connect energy demonstrations to industry and job creation by attracting related companies and developing industrial complexes. The focus will be on stabilizing the power system through technologies that link batteries with wind and solar power, aiming to attract climate tech companies.
Governor Wi stated, "We are discussing projects to practically implement carbon neutrality by 2035 with the Ministry of Climate," adding that plans related to this could be announced soon with the climate minister.
He also revealed plans to attract public institutions, targeting organizations such as the Korea Racing Authority, Korea Airports Corporation, and the Korea Energy Technology Evaluation Institute. He emphasized that since Jeju has been a leader in demonstrating distributed energy and green hydrogen, the energy evaluation institute should relocate to Jeju.
"Jeju is experimenting and demonstrating solutions to the energy issues that South Korea will face in the next decade," he said, asserting that the energy evaluation institute should come to Jeju from the perspective of solving the island's energy challenges.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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