2 GW Solar Tender Launched In South Korea

• South Korea has announced a tender to contract 2 GW solar PV capacity through KNREC
• It aims to select this capacity under 4 categories ranging between less than 100 kW to exceeding 3 MW
• Projects using solar PV modules with a lower carbon footprint will be preferred

South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy through Korean New and Renewable Energy Center (KNREC) has launched a 2 GW solar PV tender in lieu of 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) for power supply to local electricity distributors.

Bids will be accepted for 4 categories of less than 100 kW, between 100 kW to less than 500 kW, 500 kW to less than 3 MW and 3 MW and above. The center stressed that preference will be accorded to projects that use solar modules with a low carbon footprint.

Interested companies can submit bids till July 1, 2022 for final results to be announced on August 19, 2022. Further details are available on the center's website.

In H1/2021, the country awarded 2.05 GW in a similar tender followed by 2.2 GW in H2/2021. While the tendered capacity of 2 GW is less than the previous year, the center said it plans to allocate more solar power for fixed prices in H2/2022.

The new South Korean government under President Yoon Suk-yeol tilts towards nuclear power unlike previous incumber Moon Jae-in who was in favor of cutting down nuclear power's share in the national energy mix by 2050. According to an April 2022 news report by The Korea Economic Daily (KED) Suk-yeol may be looking at redoing the energy plan of his predecessor when it comes up for its next update in 2024.