Governor Kim Dong-yeon: "Attracting Power Plants Brings Triple Benefits, Provides Opportunities for Northeast Gyeonggi, and Hopes to Resolve Imbalances"
Kim Dong-yeon, Governor of Gyeonggi Province (center), is taking a commemorative photo after signing a business agreement on hydrogen fuel cell power generation and the expansion of city gas supply at the Gyeonggi Provincial Government Office on the 8th. Photo by Gyeonggi Provincial Government
[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Gyeonggi Province is attracting hydrogen fuel cell power plants to three cities/counties?Yeoju, Pocheon, and Yeoncheon?enabling approximately 1,050 nearby households to receive city gas supply as early as 2025.
The area had previously been unable to have city gas pipelines installed due to lack of business feasibility, but this issue will be resolved with the attraction of the power plants, resulting in an annual fuel cost saving of about 900,000 KRW per household.
On the 8th, Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon signed the "Business Agreement for Hydrogen Fuel Cell Power Generation and Expansion of City Gas Supply to Resolve Energy Inequality in the Northeastern Gyeonggi Region" at the Gyeonggi Provincial Office with Pocheon Mayor Baek Young-hyun, Yeoju Mayor Lee Chung-woo, Yeoncheon County Governor Kim Deok-hyun, Korea East-West Power President Kim Young-moon, Daeryun ENS CEO Jeon Dong-soo, and Cowon Energy Service CEO Sa Guk-jin.
According to the agreement, Korea East-West Power Co., Ltd. will install fuel cell power plants at 981 Yangmun-ri, Yeongjung-myeon, Pocheon City; San 36, Sinnam-ri, Buknae-myeon, Yeoju City; and 24-1 Namgye-ri, Gunnam-myeon, Yeoncheon County, respectively. Daeryun ENS Co., Ltd. and Cowon Energy Service Co., Ltd. will connect city gas pipelines from the existing city gas pipeline terminals to the fuel cell power plants.
The project scale totals 109.6 billion KRW. After the agreement, Korea East-West Power will proceed with permits and design procedures to construct the hydrogen fuel cell power plants. After construction, city gas pipelines will be installed in Pocheon (7.3 km for 600 households), Yeoju (4 km for 400 households), and Yeoncheon (2.2 km for 50 households), respectively.
The installation of the three power plants and the gas pipeline installation and connection will begin construction in the first half of next year and be sequentially completed in 2025.
The province is currently promoting energy welfare projects for five northeastern Gyeonggi cities/counties (Pocheon, Yeoncheon, Gapyeong, Yangpyeong, Yeoju), where the average city gas supply rate is below 50%.
While the overall city gas supply rate in the province is 84.8%, the average supply rate in these five northeastern cities/counties is only 42.5%.
Starting with a meeting with the five cities/counties in June, the province considered site acquisition, resident consent, heat supply, and willingness of city/county participation, ultimately deciding in October to designate Yeoju, Pocheon, and Yeoncheon as the power plant attraction areas.
At the signing ceremony, Governor Kim Dong-yeon explained, "The hydrogen fuel cell power plants (attracted by Gyeonggi Province) are a triple-win project. First, they resolve regional imbalances including energy inequality. Second, supplying heat generated from the power plants to industrial complexes in Pocheon, smart farms in Yeoju, and slaughterhouses in Yeoncheon will increase productivity. Third, from the perspective of renewable energy projects, hydrogen fuel cell power plants are meaningful in terms of the hydrogen economy and responding to climate change."
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