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Ulleung to become energy-independent island
By Kim Se-jeong
Choi Soo-il Ulleung County governor
By Kim Se-jeong
Ulleung Island, North Gyeongsang Province, will be energy independent through using renewable energy sources from 2020, according to its governor Sunday.
Governor Choi Soo-il announced the “Green Island Project” that will take advantage of state-of-the-art energy technologies when signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO).
“Ulleung Island will generate all its electricity from renewable energy sources from 2020,” Choi told The Korea Times. “The project will be the future for the island. This will help us become a zero-carbon island.”
The island is currently powered by two conventional power plants and a hydropower station.
“Fuel cell, wind, geothermal and solar power will replace the conventional power plants,” said the governor.
To achieve this goal, the island will establish a new electrical grid with a built-in energy storage system that will store spare electricity. “This is relatively new technology. If the new energy storage system succeeds in Ulleung, the country may be able to export the system, opening new commercial opportunities.”
The project was formulated during the presidency of Lee Myung-bak. “But, it failed without the participation of the private sector,” Choi said.
This time both KEPCO and LG came onboard, as well as the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy for the project that will cost 330 billion won ($312 million).
Choi took Samsoe Island in Denmark as an example. In Samsoe, 100 percent of the electricity comes from wind power. The two islands signed an MOU for cooperation in 2010.
The 10,000 islanders will be the biggest beneficiary of the project,
Currently, they pay a much higher fee for electricity than on the mainland because of the additional cost of gasoline shipment.
A native islander, Choi studied engineering at Daegu Technical University.
He was first elected as governor in October 2011 through by-elections. In July this year, he was sworn in for another four-year term. Prior to that, he was a member of the county council on Ulleung Island.