The Wando-Jeju Undersea Power Transmission Line Project, Struggling for 4 Years, Finally Makes Progress

Submission of Resident Consent for Converter Station Attraction... KEPCO 'Actively Accepts'
Despite Claims of Procedural Flaws and Rush Passage, Compensation and Progress Expected to Accelerate

Status of Submarine Power Transmission Line between Wando and Jeju (Photo by KEPCO)

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Kyung-pil] Although the main purpose is to supply electricity to Jeju, the Wando-Jeju subsea power transmission line project, which has been misrepresented as a project for Wando, has taken a turn as the residents of Doam-ri village in Wando-eup submitted a consent form for the converter station to KEPCO on the 29th of last month.

KEPCO began promoting the 3rd ultra-high voltage direct current transmission network project in 2017. However, the project faced repeated difficulties after a residents' briefing session held in Wando in February 2018 was canceled due to opposition from residents.

In March of the same year, the 'Anti-Converter Station and High-Voltage Transmission Tower Construction Wando County Residents' Countermeasure Committee (Opposition Committee)' was formed, and the project was stalled for four years.

On the 27th of last month at 11 a.m., a temporary general meeting was held at the Doam-ri village hall in Wando-eup to address the KEPCO converter station hosting agenda, which had been a source of local controversy for three years, with 31 out of 43 households attending.

However, some opposing residents questioned the selection criteria of the 43 households, demanded disclosure of the household list, raised procedural issues regarding the past rejection of the converter station hosting agenda, and criticized the individual interviews conducted during the process of obtaining residents' consent forms, condemning it as a rushed approval.

Amid the loud exchanges between supporters and opponents, the meeting chairperson, Kim Seon-gon, declared, "Based on the fact that the majority approved the existing consent forms, we will proceed with (KEPCO converter station hosting)" and announced the approval.

It is reported that the background for Doam-ri residents agreeing to host the converter station was concerns that if the converter station were hosted in a neighboring village, only high-voltage transmission towers might be installed in their village as a passageway.

Doam-ri is opposed to the 12th 'Wando-Jeju 3rd Ultra-High Voltage Direct Current Transmission Network Construction Project' as decided by the Wando County-wide Countermeasure Committee on February 28. However, it is known that they showed interest while the committee was considering several villages within Wando-eup for hosting the converter station, saying, "If residents voluntarily want to host the converter station, it can't be helped."

In this regard, the County-wide Countermeasure Committee convened a general meeting on the 29th of last month, but only 15 out of 49 members attended, resulting in a lack of quorum and the meeting being canceled without any specific measures.

On the 29th of last month, from 9 a.m., about 20 people including some opposing residents of Doam-ri and members of the existing village solidarity held a rally against hosting the Doam-ri converter station in front of Wando County Office for two hours. Wando County Mayor Shin Woo-cheol and two resident representatives held a meeting and conveyed that there were procedural issues with the village general meeting.

Meanwhile, KEPCO stated that regardless of procedural issues with the village general meeting, if the consent form for hosting the converter station is directly delivered at the village level in Doam-ri, they will actively accept it and proceed with the project.

A KEPCO official said, "Since we decided to accept the third site that residents want, we will actively accept it. There is nothing special procedurally about delivering the village-level consent position, and it seems that the process was just officially followed by holding a temporary village general meeting."

Regarding compensation, the official added, "Before the consent form is delivered to KEPCO, we explained it when the development committee members visited, and once the consent form is delivered, we will explain the compensation plan at any time."

Once the consent form for hosting the converter station is delivered, KEPCO will complete surveying and environmental impact assessments and then apply for approval of the implementation plan from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. After the ministry's project approval, KEPCO can purchase the land for the converter station site and begin construction.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.