Release Date: 11-Oct-2012
South Korean wind energy has a lot of potential, given its topography and geographical location. The country has been blessed with a long coastline which offers optimum offshore wind potential. There is a lot of onshore wind potential precisely because of the same coastline and the coastal winds but the onshore potential is limited because of the inadequate land area. The wind energy development is increasingly moving from small to larger wind turbines and from onshore to offshore wind farms.
The country’s has potentially good wind power reserves. Onshore wind power reserves are of the order of 38.54 GW while the offshore reserves are close to 90 GW. The onshore sector in South Korea has seen tremendous development over the years. All of the power generation capacity in the country by virtue of wind energy is through onshore wind farms. There are about 31 onshore wind farms in the country which are exploiting the wind energy available within the confines of its terrain. These wind farms are located all around the country with varying capacities and wind turbines. In all, South Korea’s wind farms have a capacity of 577 MW, presently, out of which 412 is onshore and 165 MW is offshore.
Currently, the onshore capacity is bigger than the offshore capacity, it still remains a fact that the offshore potential is much more than the onshore potential. In future, wind power generation is going to move offshore in the country as can also be seen by the Jeju Island offshore wind park with a 5 MW capacity that has been installed as a demonstrative wind park and two other projects that have come up hiking the offshore installed capacity to 165 MW.
The development of offshore wind projects is also attractive for the government as it will be able to save a lot of land that it is using for wind farms. In the midst of the industrial expansion and population increase, it will be wiser for the government to focus its energy towards offshore wind farm development. The offshore option is a little more expensive than the onshore option but then it also gives better efficiency and has greater potential for wind energy. Given the problems cropping up with the onshore wind power development sector in the country, the South Korean offshore sector seems to be more lucrative as of now. Huge investments are being made in projects offshore and considering the expansive potential the country has in this sector, it will certainly attract the largest investment in the future and will be the key driver in developing the South Korea’s wind energy.
For more information please visit “South Korea Wind Power Sector Analysis”