Gyeonggi-do Invests 124.2 Billion KRW in Energy Efficiency Projects

Gyeonggi Province will provide a total of 124.2 billion KRW to support energy efficiency projects, including renewable energy, within the province.

On the 11th, Gyeonggi Province announced that this year it will invest 124.2 billion KRW in four major projects: ▲1.2 billion KRW in low-interest loans for small-scale solar power plants ▲33.3 billion KRW to cover interest rate differences for renewable energy distribution projects using bank capital ▲80 billion KRW for guarantees and 2% interest reductions for solar power and energy efficiency project operators ▲150 million KRW in low-interest loans for energy efficiency improvements for small and medium-sized enterprises in industrial complexes with high electricity consumption.

First, Gyeonggi Province will supply 12 billion KRW as energy loan funds for small-scale solar power plants. The support targets small-scale solar power plants with a capacity of 500 kW or less, with the support scale increased by 9.5 billion KRW compared to the previous year. These companies will receive support at a low interest rate of 3% per annum.

In particular, Gyeonggi Province has increased the facility capacity supported from up to 200 kW to 500 kW according to the demand of power producers, and significantly raised the loan limit from the previous 320 million KRW to 850 million KRW.

Additionally, Gyeonggi Province plans to expand the support target, which was limited to commercial use, to include self-generation facilities, encouraging capital investment by small and medium-sized enterprises aiming to achieve RE100 through the installation of self-use solar power generation.

Gyeonggi Province will also pour 33.3 billion KRW into interest support for renewable energy loans. This project supports companies that newly install medium-scale solar power plants of 300 kW or more by subsidizing the interest when they take out loans from banks that have agreements with Gyeonggi Province.

Financial institutions were selected through a public contest, and a budget of 1 billion KRW has been secured this year for loan interest. Gyeonggi Province expects that by supporting 3% interest annually for the next three years, the actual interest expense for project operators will be around 3-4%.

Gyeonggi Province will also implement a loan support project for energy efficiency improvements for small and medium-sized enterprises in industrial complexes. Funding will be provided for various energy-saving devices such as replacing old boilers, reusing waste heat, and LED lighting to improve energy efficiency.

With a newly allocated budget of 1.5 billion KRW, Gyeonggi Province will provide loans of up to 500 million KRW at a low interest rate of 3% per annum to companies installing energy efficiency devices. The announcement for recruiting participating companies for this project is scheduled for later this month.

Gyeonggi Province is also promoting special financial support totaling 100 billion KRW in partnership with the Gyeonggi Credit Guarantee Foundation and four banks for companies involved in the installation, manufacturing, and management of solar power and energy efficiency facilities (80 billion KRW), manufacturers of disposable product alternatives (10 billion KRW), and climate tech companies (10 billion KRW).

To this end, Gyeonggi Province launched the "Gyeonggi Province SME Climate Crisis Response Special Guarantee" product on the 11th. This product supports guarantees for loans up to 500 million KRW per company and additionally offers a 2.0 percentage point interest reduction. Companies using this product can access funds at an average interest rate within 3.2% per annum.

Cha Seong-su, Director of the Climate Environment and Energy Bureau of Gyeonggi Province, stated, "Despite the government reducing financial support by 98 billion KRW and hindering the spread of renewable energy due to high interest rates, going against global trends, Gyeonggi Province will expand financial support to ensure that the renewable energy market does not shrink amid domestic and international economic difficulties and secure export competitiveness for RE100 companies."