Haenam-gun to Establish the Nation's Largest 'Carbon Neutral Edu Center'

Establishing Exhibition and Education Centers, Experience Facilities, and Enhancing Public Awareness to Achieve Carbon Neutrality Hub

Haenam-gun Government Office Exterior Photo by Asia Economy

[Haenam＝Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Hyun] The Carbon Neutrality Edu Center will serve as a national education center for achieving carbon neutrality and transitioning to future energy. It will operate various educational facilities and provide spaces where people can experience energy reduction methods in daily life and various environmental issues.

According to Haenam County on the 4th, a total project cost of 42.5 billion KRW, including 29.8 billion KRW in national funds, will be invested to create exhibition and education halls, experience facilities, promotional centers, and a carbon neutrality promotion center on a 57,500㎡ site within the Solar City industrial complex in Sanggong-ri, Sanim-myeon.

Following the attraction of the Agricultural and Food Climate Change Response Center last September, the county has now attracted the Carbon Neutrality Edu Center, emerging as South Korea’s number one hub for responding to climate change.

The Carbon Neutrality Edu Center is expected to attract 10 million visitors annually, enhancing the region’s status as a leader in carbon neutrality and playing a significant role in revitalizing the local economy.

Design and groundbreaking will begin next year, with all construction phases completed by 2024, and full operation of the Carbon Neutrality Edu Center planned from 2025.

The Solar City industrial complex, where the center will be located, is developing a 1.59 million㎡ (approximately 480,000 pyeong) renewable energy industrial complex with a capacity of 98 MW, centered around the Solar City photovoltaic power plant, which boasts the largest power generation capacity in Korea and the world’s largest storage capacity.

As part of Jeollanam-do’s Blue Economy, the Jeonnam-type Smart Blue City development envisions a garden city, solar energy city, and smart city. It aims to create a smart city with self-sufficient functions such as jobs, tourism, housing, education, and healthcare. This includes establishing an RE100 exclusive pilot complex that supplies 100% of the industrial complex’s electricity from renewable energy, as well as developing the 500,000㎡ (approximately 160,000 pyeong) San-i Garden, a complex cultural space.

The establishment of the Carbon Neutrality Edu Center is expected to promote investment attraction for key projects aligned with the industrial city’s urban vision and help improve its image.

County Governor Myeong Hyun-gwan stated, “With the construction of the largest carbon neutrality edu center in Korea in Haenam as a proactive response to carbon neutrality, conditions will be created to take a step closer to realizing a future-oriented and global carbon-neutral garden city. We will actively support the Carbon Neutrality Edu Center to become a space for national participation and communication to solve national challenges.”

Haenam＝Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Hyun kh0424@asiae.co.kr