Incheon Deokjeokdo Offshore Wind Power Project Faces Another Halt in Ministry of Industry Approval Review

Danish company Ørsted Korea's offshore wind power project being promoted on Deokjeokdo Island in Incheon has been stalled again.

According to Incheon City on the 27th, the Electricity Committee of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, which met on the 24th, reviewed the offshore wind power project in Incheon for which Ørsted applied for an electricity business license and decided to withhold approval.

This project involves Ørsted Korea investing about 8 trillion won to build a 1600 MW offshore wind power complex off the west coast of Deokjeokdo Island, Ongjin-gun, Incheon, making it the largest offshore wind power project underway in South Korea.

The Electricity Committee reportedly withheld approval again citing local residents' acceptance issues. This comes about three months after a similar decision was made at the end of last year due to insufficient local acceptance.

An official from Incheon City stated, "We have not yet received specific reasons for the withholding, but we understand that the approval was withheld due to issues with local residents' acceptance."

Offshore Wind Power Photo by Asia Economy

In the local community, movements demanding the withdrawal of the offshore wind power project continue.

A total of 1,255 residents from Baengnyeongdo, Yeonpyeongdo, and other West Sea Five Islands submitted a petition to the Presidential Office opposing the project, arguing that the passenger ship routes of the West Sea Five Islands overlap with the offshore wind power project area, potentially compromising navigation safety. The Ongjin County Council also adopted a resolution opposing the establishment of the offshore wind power complex along the West Sea Five Islands routes.

Additionally, the Incheon Federation of Civil Society Organizations (Incheon Gyeongsillyeon) has been urging the government to withhold approval, demanding the securing of public interest in the offshore wind power project.

Incheon Gyeongsillyeon stated, "Privately led offshore wind power projects taking place in front of Incheon are causing conflicts with local residents in each case. Most of these issues relate to residents' acceptance and are directly connected to the fishermen's right to livelihood," adding, "The government should recognize that the sea is a public asset and reconsider the project from the perspective of publicness and public interest under government (public) leadership."

They continued, "Incheon City should also conduct a fact-finding investigation focusing on issues such as private operators' local acceptance problems, the actual impact on local industries, and the reinvestment of private profits for local returns," and added, "Since strengthening the city's role is required in terms of local autonomy and decentralization, the establishment of the Incheon Energy Corporation should also be actively considered."

Incheon Gyeongsillyeon demanded that Incheon City conduct a comprehensive review of the Offshore Wind Power Projects 1 and 2 and form a joint response organization with local civil society to devise countermeasures.