Gwangju Chamber: "Resolving Bottlenecks in National Power Grid... Transmission and Substation Networks Must Be Expanded"

Exterior of the Gwangju Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The Gwangju Chamber of Commerce and Industry announced on April 10 that it had submitted a policy proposal to the Office for Government Policy Coordination and the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment, emphasizing the necessity of national fiscal investment to expand transmission and substation networks in order to resolve bottlenecks in the national power grid and establish a stable electricity supply system.

Through the proposal, the Gwangju Chamber highlighted that "the core task of recent power policies is shifting from expanding electricity production to expanding transmission and substation networks that can reliably deliver electricity where it is needed." The chamber pointed out that, as both electricity demand increases and the adoption of renewable energy expands, shortages and construction delays in transmission and substation networks are acting as structural constraints on the national power system.

In particular, the chamber explained that the Honam region—centered on Gwangju and South Jeolla Province—serves as a key hub for the deployment of renewable energy in Korea. Nevertheless, repeated generation output restrictions are occurring due to grid saturation and a lack of transmission lines. Conversely, in the Seoul metropolitan area, despite a surge in large-scale electricity demand from industrial complexes and data centers, delays in power supply timing have led to cases of postponed industrial investment.

The Gwangju Chamber identified the root cause of these issues as the public enterprise-centric structure of power grid investments. Currently, the expansion of transmission and substation networks is in effect handled by Korea Electric Power Corporation, but the chamber stressed that, due to KEPCO's accumulated debt burden, it is structurally difficult for a single public enterprise to continuously shoulder large-scale grid investments alone.

The chamber also emphasized that major advanced countries recognize the power grid as a national strategic infrastructure and are expanding investments through government finance and policy. For example, the United States is supporting power grid modernization and the construction of transmission infrastructure through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, while the European Union is pursuing grid expansion as a core policy under its energy transition strategy, REPowerEU.

In response, the Gwangju Chamber recommended, "The government should manage transmission and substation networks as national infrastructure, similar to roads and railways, and shift to a system where a certain proportion of all national power grid expansion projects are funded by the national budget." They further emphasized, "While centering investment on public finance, it is also necessary to diversify the investment structure by encouraging private sector participation, thereby establishing a stable foundation for long-term expansion of the power grid."

The chamber added, "The power grid is not merely an electricity facility, but a national core infrastructure that supports the industrial competitiveness and energy security of Korea." They stressed, "Building a power grid capable of supplying electricity where it is needed, on time, is a national task that cannot be postponed any longer, and thus proactive policy changes and fiscal investment from the government are required."

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