Final Selection to Be Decided at Next Month's Energy Committee Meeting
On May 22, Chungnam Province announced that Seosan City has been selected as a final candidate in a public contest for the designation of a distributed energy specialized zone, organized by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
Under the Special Act on the Promotion of Distributed Energy, distributed energy specialized zones are subject to regulatory exemptions within the region, making it possible to apply lower electricity rates through direct electricity transactions.
A total of 25 sites in 11 cities and provinces across 11 local governments nationwide applied. Among these, Seosan was chosen as one of the seven final candidate sites. The business model for the distributed energy specialized zone in Seosan involves local power generation companies directly supplying affordable electricity to the Daesan petrochemical complex, which has high electricity demand.
The companies in need of electricity are expected to save between 15 billion and 17 billion KRW in electricity costs annually.
The power plant supplying electricity to this area is HD Hyundai E&F's 299.9MW LNG combined heat and power plant. The 14 companies benefiting from this supply include HD Hyundai OCI, KCC, and Kolon Industries, among others.
The final decision on the designation of the distributed energy specialized zone will be made at the Energy Committee meeting scheduled for next month. The provincial government plans to further strengthen cooperation with Seosan City and the power generation company HD Hyundai E&F to ensure final selection.
Governor Kim Tae-heum stated, "As industries become more advanced, corporate electricity demand will inevitably continue to rise. The designation of a distributed energy specialized zone will be an opportunity to establish a new electricity supply system. Starting with Seosan, we will seek to have Cheonan, Asan, Boryeong, Yesan, and other areas additionally designated as specialized zones to further expand the foundation for attracting businesses."
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