South Korea to hold offshore wind competitive tenders of at least 4GW annually for 10 years

The government plans to hold competitive tenders for offshore wind power of at least 4.0 gigawatts annually from this year through 2035 — a capacity comparable to that of three large nuclear reactors.

The Ministry of Climate, Environment and Energy unveiled the "offshore wind medium- to long-term bidding roadmap" Tuesday at a meeting with the offshore wind industry at the Korea Electric Power Corp. Art Center in Seocho-gu, Seoul, presided over by Second Vice Minister Lee Ho-hyun.

The ministry had previously outlined a plan in December to bring 10.5GW of offshore wind capacity to near-completion or ground-breaking stage by 2030 and reach a cumulative installed capacity of 25GW by 2035.

The new roadmap serves as a schedule for achieving those targets. Under the plan, the government will conduct competitive tenders totaling 28GW over the five years from this year through 2030, and 55GW in total through 2035, at a rate of at least 4.0GW per year. The ministry said that pace is on par with leading offshore wind markets such as the United Kingdom, Germany and the Netherlands.

Of the 55GW total, 31GW will be pursued through a "fixed-price competitive tender" system through 2033, under which developers are selected to supply renewable energy certificates to entities obligated to procure renewable energy at a set price for 20 years. The remaining 24GW will be put to competitive tender between 2031 and 2035, targeting government-designated power generation zones.

The government aims to maintain a bid competition ratio of at least two to one to drive down contract unit prices.

The ministry also plans to consult with the industry in the second half of this year on how to align the competitive tender process with its broader goal of abolishing the Renewable Portfolio Standard in 2027 and replacing it with a government-led long-term fixed-price contract market system.

"Offshore wind is a key power source for achieving carbon neutrality, ensuring energy security and meeting rising electricity demand," Lee said. "We will expand offshore wind deployment on the basis of stable tender volumes and a predictable regulatory regime."

"Through this, we will achieve economies of scale and continuously strengthen the industrial and price competitiveness of offshore wind," he added.