Jeollanam-do Secures Entire Government ESS Bid Worth 1.5 Trillion Won

Jeonnam Provincial Government Office Building Exterior

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Jeollanam-do has secured the entire bid volume in the 2025 First Government ESS Bid, which was a nationwide competition among five cities and provinces for the introduction of privately built energy storage systems (ESS) into the Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) power grid.

The successful ESS government bid operators will build ESS facilities connected to KEPCO substations. When requested by the Korea Power Exchange, they will store surplus renewable energy in the ESS, which would otherwise burden the KEPCO grid, and then supply it during peak electricity demand hours.

Seven projects were selected in six cities and counties in Jeollanam-do: Yeonggwang, Muan, Jindo, Goheung, Gwangyang, and Shinan. This is the first time such a project has been promoted in a mainland region since it was first implemented in Jeju in 2023.

The total awarded bid volume secured by Jeollanam-do is 523 MW, which means the ESS facilities can store or supply 523 MWh of electricity per hour. The total project cost is estimated to reach 1.5 trillion won.

According to the bid requirements, the ESS must be capable of storing or supplying electricity for six hours, resulting in a battery storage capacity of 3,138 MWh. Based on the average daily electricity consumption per household in Jeollanam-do (7 kWh), this is enough electricity to power about 450,000 households for one day.

This successful bid is expected to have a tangible effect in easing renewable energy output control in Jeollanam-do. Additionally, it is anticipated to create more than 9,300 jobs in the ESS manufacturing and construction sectors. It is also expected to lead to increased sales for local renewable energy equipment manufacturing and construction companies.

Jeollanam-do plans to systematically establish a local ESS industry foundation in connection with the government's Jeollanam-do RE100 industrial complex and next-generation power grid innovation base projects in the future.

Until now, Jeollanam-do has continuously requested an expansion of the ESS government bid market in the province. As a result, the 2025 Basic Electricity Supply and Demand Plan explicitly included a provision for the government to prioritize ESS introduction in the Honam region, which led to this follow-up bid.

In May, Jeollanam-do and its cities and counties proactively formed the "Grid Stability ESS Support Team" and, after discussing plans to secure resident acceptance with 19 local project applicants, submitted a positive opinion letter to the Korea Power Exchange.

With new ESS bid volumes scheduled to exceed three times the current bid amount, reaching 1.6 GW by 2027, Jeollanam-do plans to maintain a constant support system with local governments and actively provide administrative support such as site identification and securing resident acceptance.

Jeong Hyeongu, Director of the Energy Industry Bureau of Jeollanam-do, said, "We will do our best to expand renewable energy, realize basic energy income, and attract high-tech companies by introducing large-scale ESS in the province."

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