[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] It has been analyzed that to successfully promote energy transition policies, it is important to induce proactive participation of local residents and actively utilize information and communication technology (IT).
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on the 12th that it held an awards ceremony for the 'National Energy Transition Best Practices Contest' at Post Tower in Jung-gu, Seoul, together with the Korea Energy Information Culture Foundation.
In April, the Ministry called for energy transition cases that demonstrate the active spread of energy transition beyond the central government level, involving companies, local governments, public institutions, and civic groups as main actors.
A total of 86 cases were submitted across four categories: companies, local governments, public institutions, and civic groups. Twelve excellent cases were selected through two rounds of evaluation by an external expert judging panel.
The grand prize winners of the Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Award included ▲Rezler (company category) ▲Ansan City (local government category) ▲Seoul Energy Corporation (public institution category) ▲Jeonju Energy Transition Forum (civic group category).
The top excellence awards went to ▲Hanwha Q CELLS ▲Hwaseong City ▲Korea South-East Power ▲Hansalim Solar Power Cooperative, and excellence awards were given to ▲Haezoom ▲Dangjin City ▲Korea East-West Power ▲Geumha Village Residents’ Council.
Analysis of the awarded cases by the Ministry showed that for energy transition to be successfully realized on the ground, proactive participation by local governments and residents and active use of IT are necessary.
The conclusion is that energy transition requires local governments to take the lead and secure acceptance through communication with local residents above all else.
Rezler, the solar power developer that won the grand prize, installed a solar power plant (total 65MW) in Galmal-eup, Cheorwon-gun, Gangwon-do, a military border area, and through more than 50 communication sessions with residents, fostered a sense of ownership among them and established economic self-reliance plans.
Ansan City also saw participation from 94,887 households in the 'Ansan Energy Saving Village Creation' project, which started in 2017.
The utilization of IT technology was also analyzed as an important factor in promoting energy transition.
Haezoom, a solar IT specialist company that won an excellence award, developed and distributed the 'Sunlight Map,' which allows anyone to easily predict solar power generation and check profitability for free.
As of February, the Sunlight Map service had about 1.2 million users.
A Ministry official said, "The 12 selected best cases will be reproduced in various forms that can utilize online media such as videos, card news, and blogs."
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