Geochang-gun Selected for 2021 Regional Energy New Industry Support Project Competition

Goal to Establish 46 Village Solar Power Plants for Local Economic Revitalization

Support Project for Revitalizing Regional New Energy Industries
[Image source=Geochang-gun]

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] Geochang-gun, Gyeongnam announced on the 13th that it has been selected for the ‘2021 Regional Energy New Industry Activation Support Project’ hosted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Korea Energy Agency.

The Regional Energy New Industry Activation Support Project was finally selected as a result of thorough public evaluation preparations, including forming a consortium with private investors selected through an open recruitment by Geochang-gun, establishing a business plan, holding resident briefings in all towns and townships, and conducting field surveys to discover project sites.

This project supports creative models that align with the government’s renewable energy expansion strategy and combine with the local energy ecosystem. The county aims to promote the ‘construction of 46 village solar power plants’ to discover new energy industries reflecting the characteristics of rural areas and revitalize the rural economy.

The project scale is a total budget of 2 billion KRW with about 850 kW of solar power (5 sites of 10 kW, 4 sites of 15 kW, 37 sites of 20 kW). The funding matching ratio for the selected project is 25% national funds (500 million KRW), 25% county funds (500 million KRW), and 50% private investors (1 billion KRW).

Gu In-mo, the mayor of Geochang-gun, said, “If a simple warehouse roof is utilized as a village solar power plant, it will become the foundation of a future food source project in rural areas that contributes to increasing village income and creating a communal fund through fixed income generation over 20 years.”

Geochang-gun plans to use village solar power plants by constructing small-scale solar power plants (under 20 kW) on the roofs of village communal warehouses or collection centers (joint crop groups), and selling the generated electricity to be used as a source of income for the village communal fund and private investors.

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