Regions

Regions

Jeju should write "direct dividends" and "public contributions" from renewables into rules, local series says, calling for a roadmap with a standing council, disclosure and performance indicators

Proposed sequence runs from surveying existing wind farms to pilot projects, evaluation and expansion; results should be judged by bill savings, resident dividends, community returns and participation, and any burden on private developers needs a clear legal basis first

2026.11.01

Regions

Gapado, where wind power stopped, tries again as a public-agency-led "RE100 village" with 600kW of wind, 990kW of solar and 7MWh of storage

The first energy self-sufficient island removed its wind turbines in September 2024 after equipment failures and now runs on three 150kW diesel generators; KEPCO, the Korea Energy Agency and KEPCO KDN will carry out the 2026-2027 project, whose budget has shrunk from a planned 22 billion won to 8 billion won this year

2026.11.01

Regions

Seocheon County Council passes rural basic income and fund ordinances, listing resident-profit renewable energy projects among the fund's uses

Two member-sponsored ordinances pass unamended; basic income would be paid in local currency and the fund, running to the end of 2031, would draw on general-account transfers, investment returns and donations, while payment amounts, eligible numbers and a start date remain undecided

2026.11.01

Regions

Of 30 billion won invested by residents in Jeju's Hallim offshore wind farm, 20 billion came from a state agency's policy loans, prompting a proposal to separate investor dividends from public returns to all islanders

1,009 residents of three nearby villages invested through a cooperative, but low-interest loans are limited by distance, length of residence and fishing-rights damage; the province's "residents first, then all islanders" plan for Chuja offshore wind raises worries about financing-cost gaps and people left out of dividends, says a proposal closing a local daily's series

2026.10.30

Regions

Paju wins the Energy Transition Forum's Energy Transition Award in the local government category for direct PPAs of public renewable power to firms and a money-saving apartment electricity plan

The award was presented at the "2026 Energy Transition Night" on October 28, and the city says it is the first basic-level local government to win; no figures such as supply capacity for firms or electricity bill savings were announced

2026.10.30

Regions

Solar on the roofs and parking lots of 16 Jeonbuk schools: "Haetbit Ieum School" pilot moves to contractor selection

About 2.5 billion won in Education Ministry special grants; panels on eight main buildings, four parking lots and more. All five tenders posted so far (eight schools) are negotiated quotations limited to firms headquartered in Jeonbuk; tenders for the other eight schools are not yet listed

2026.10.30

Regions

Yeongam's 2GW solar cluster hands out consent forms without a project plan; on existing private leases, officials say "hard to answer right now"

Issues from the Oct. 23 landowners' meeting: most land in the planned area is already leased to private developers; conventional solar rather than agrivoltaics, with farmland used for up to 23 years under a temporary-use permit and construction from 2029 at the earliest

2026.10.30

Regions

Researchers unveil draft future strategy as 7GW of offshore wind heads for Incheon's waters, with 22 tasks from fishers' co-existence to local use of power and benefit-sharing for islands and the old city centre

Dongguk University professor Lim Hyo-suk presents 3 areas and 9 key strategies at an Incheon Technopark citizens' forum; it is a draft by researchers, not confirmed city policy, with a final version due in mid-December after consultation in November

2026.10.30

Regions

Taean County head Yoon Hee-shin says offshore wind cannot be approved without resident acceptance, calling the county's planned cluster zone a basis for sharing profits with residents

Remarks at a county affairs meeting with the Taean County Development Committee; both support and opposition have been filed in the Taean Offshore Wind permitting process, and the developer is told to consult fully with opposing fishers and groups

2026.10.30

Regions

Jeju unveils three models for second-round distributed energy zone bid: 100 households in Sillye-1-ri to trade power with neighbours, 48 rental flats in Hamdeok to share rooftop solar

The "community microgrid" type requires at least 70% of annual output to be used within an area of up to 6.6 million square metres served by one substation; public comments run to 5 November, and a decision on designation is due in December

2026.10.29

Regions

Osan to run 1,217kW of solar on four public car parks itself and drafts ordinance for a climate fund to hold the power-sales revenue

Sammi, Eungye, Doksanseong East Gate and Eunbitgaeul Park car parks targeted, with public buildings to follow; overhaul of energy ordinance includes "stronger support for citizen-participation energy projects"

2026.10.29

Regions

Anseong's Geumseokcheon RE100 park, named a top example of proactive administration by Gyeonggi Province, dropped six months later; 1.95 billion won plan left out about 4 billion won for land

Plan assumed free occupancy of a former riverbed, but the land's public-use designation was lifted and free use was refused; council answers say 3 of 4 parcels lost the designation in 2023, and a 63 million won design contract was ended early

2026.10.29

Regions

Citizen deliberation begins on use of 1.54 million㎡ atop Sudokwon Landfill No. 2, with solar, parks, botanical garden and UAM test site on the table ahead of March 2027 forum

Incheon holds first citizen deliberation learning session on Oct. 29 for land over 847.17 million tonnes of waste; city turned to deliberation after residents opposed ministry's solar plan, says "no specific facility has been decided"

2026.10.29

Regions

Pyeongchang County eyes wind and solar income to fund a 150,000-won monthly basic income for all residents, aiming to pay within the current term

A two-track plan pairing national and provincial money from the government's rural basic income contest with renewable energy revenue; an energy strategy task force was set up in August, but contest selection, revenue size and funding structure have not been disclosed

2026.10.29

Regions

Only 218 kW, or 0.03%, of Seosan's 680,000 kW generating capacity is in resident-owned village plants; councillor preparing benefit-sharing ordinance

In her first questioning session, Seosan city councillor Kim Ae-ran asked the city to support consulting for resident cooperatives and set rules for sharing development profits; the draft has not yet been introduced, and no city reply on the energy point has been reported

2026.10.29

Regions

Three villages near Jeju's Hallim offshore wind farm invest 4.7% of project cost and receive dividends; Chuja offshore wind plan envisions islanders first, other Jeju residents second as investors

Existing wind farms pay 17.5% of net profit into a sharing fund; the Chuja retender is weighing alternatives to a fixed 130-billion-won annual condition, and sending 2.37 GW to the mainland runs into a 900 MW subsea link limit

2026.10.28

Regions

Jeju to open a call in mid-November for two resident-led carbon-neutral pilot villages, with 11.2 billion won for 2026-2030

Neighbourhoods and villages would bundle daily life, resource recycling and energy transition into village-scale trials; solar panels and switching village halls to RE100 are only examples, and results will be checked against emissions before and after

2026.10.28

Regions

Cheonan has started none of the 20 public car parks required to install solar; first survey including idle public land puts it at 28 sites, over 8MW and about 13 billion won

A legal change last November obliges public car parks with 1,000㎡ or more of parking area to install renewables; the city is weighing private participation because of the cost, while a civic group proposes extending it to lots of 50 spaces or fewer and a 20% target by 2030

2026.10.28

Regions

Namhae County head Ryu Gyeong-wan puts an energy self-reliant island at the core of his agenda, plans bids for distribution-grid ESS and a distributed energy zone and wants Sunlight Income Village profits to go to residents

In a 100-day interview he named limited transmission and distribution capacity as the main barrier to more renewables; he has asked the head of the Korea Energy Agency to bring ESS projects and support Sunlight Income Villages, but no bid has been won and no village numbers given

2026.10.28

Regions

Yeongam County pursues renewable energy cluster of 2GW or more on about 17 million㎡ of Samho-Miam reclaimed land; meets some 200 landowners and residents

County to lead site selection and master plan, then pick a developer by open call judged on resident participation ratio and profit return; consent forms are for the government designation application, and development profits are to fund a participatory basic income

2026.10.27

Regions

Hampyeong renewable zone campaign asks government and National Assembly to designate the county a resident-led national energy production leader zone, sets out four demands including a special act

The plan would treat the whole county as one national strategic space planning generation, storage, transmission and an industrial park together; it targets 8GW in the long run, offers to host hard-to-site facilities and plans to deliver signatures and a petition on Nov. 16, while the zone, special district and national industrial park all remain demands

2026.10.27

Regions

After lawmaker calls for sunlight income villages in urban dong districts, Jeju's dong neighbourhoods line up with inquiries — but curtailment means costly battery storage for each village

Jeju official says the interior ministry is gathering views and plans to announce criteria within the year, but it is too early to predict an expansion pending talks with KEPCO; Aewol's Yongheung-ri and Namwon's Wimi 1-ri selected so far, third call closes at month's end

2026.10.27

Regions

South Jeolla research institute's Sinan development report proposes turning sunlight and wind pensions into basic-income-style energy welfare, with sunlight pension target rising from 7.5 billion won in 2025 to 13 billion won in 2030

Report sets goals of 3.5GW of offshore wind by 2030 and 8.2GW by 2035 and 1,200MW of solar by 2030, links pensions to resident cooperatives and a local revitalisation fund, and proposes regional offshore wind maintenance hubs and an RE100 industrial complex

2026.10.27

Regions

Saemangeum Hope Solar's 99MW plant weighed two resident-participation routes, but a fund for North Jeolla residents was blocked by the financial regulator's regional-limit concerns

KRW 157.5 billion project in commercial operation since December 2021; a resident corporation of about KRW 6.3 billion for people within 1km was pursued, and the company says it donates KRW 661 million a year locally and funds scholarships for North Jeolla students

2026.10.26

Regions

Jeju plans 5GW of offshore wind by 2035 and wider wind and sunlight pensions

Governor Wi Sung-gon, in an interview marking 100 days in office, set out development including the 2GW Chuja offshore wind project and a green AI data centre powered by renewables, without giving the scale or funding of the pension expansion

2026.10.26

Regions

Dadaepo offshore wind developer signs youth jobs and local supply chain pact with Saha-gu youth association for 99MW fixed-bottom project

Busan Offshore Wind Power to pursue training, job placement and tourism use; developer-cited survey shows 56.7% support and 26.7% opposition and a study puts job creation at 1,112, while the pact contains no resident equity or dividend plan

2026.10.26

Regions

Incheon's Juan and Bupyeong industrial complexes win government energy self-sufficiency grant to put 10MW of solar on factory roofs and car parks

32 billion won including 20 billion won in state funds to be spent by 2029 for a planned 12,400MWh a year; a 1.1 billion won "sunlight income fund" from power revenue is to go back to tenant companies and workers

2026.10.26

Regions

Goheung County aims to put solar on one in three detached houses by 2030, targeting 9,000 of 27,000 homes under its Home Solar 3033 project

Uptake stood at about 23%, or some 6,200 households, as of September; this year 4.298 billion won goes to convergence support in five towns and 476 million won to 100 homes

2026.10.26

Regions

Yeongcheon council committee passes amended ordinance cutting solar setback from residential clusters from 300m to 100m

Industry and construction committee also scraps road setback rule; scope changed from "10 or more houses" to "5 or more" in line with revised renewable energy decree

2026.10.25

Regions

Jeonnam Research Institute envisions 3.6GW offshore wind and 1.4GW solar for Jindo, with a resident-shareholding "Jindo energy pension"

"Jindo County Development Plan" report proposes 1GW of agrivoltaics by 2035 and up to 400MW of floating solar, and envisions reinvesting offshore wind revenue in welfare, housing and transport from 2031

2026.10.25

Regions

Hampyeong renewable zone campaign says missing out on a 345kV substation would delay 8GW hub and RE100 industrial park by over two years; press conference on Oct. 27 and rally on Nov. 3 planned

Co-chair Oh Min-su issues an appeal to residents, putting the substation first among four goals; the committee expects a review decision between late December and early January, but the zone, substation and industrial park are all undecided

2026.10.25

Regions

Boryeong asks People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyuk to back public-led solar and offshore wind clusters

City also seeks institutional changes for the phase-out of coal power: retroactive special-act support for areas where coal plants have closed, a legal basis for supporting security-reserve generators, and reflecting the damage in how the Future Response Fund is distributed

2026.10.25

Regions

Gwangju's power self-sufficiency at 9.3% versus South Jeolla's 197.9%, a 21.3-fold gap; Gwangju climate energy agency calls for clear eligibility and allocation rules for sunlight and wind pensions

Analysis based on 2023, before the merger; the two regions' 133 energy-plan projects run on different periods and indicators and cannot simply be merged; combined 2035 renewable capacity target is 38,858MW

2026.10.25

Regions

Hwacheon County plans a sunlight pension sharing solar income from Paroho Lake and idle military land, aiming for 100,000 to 150,000 won a month per resident

County Governor Kim Se-hoon set a target of payments within three to four years at the earliest in a 100-day interview; capacity, cost and operator not yet disclosed, combined with the 150,000-won rural basic income the county envisions 250,000 to 300,000 won a month

2026.10.24

Regions

Sinan's 96MW Jaeun offshore wind farm marks 17 months of commercial operation as winning over residents along transmission routes emerges as the key hurdle for an 8.2GW cluster

Plans call for 500 fixed-bottom turbines across 12,000㎢ between Uido and Imjado within 10 years and a 10GW floating project off Heuksando; complaints in Hampyeong, Yeonggwang and Jangseong along the Imja–Sinjangseong line weigh on the project

2026.10.24

Regions

Incheon solar cooperative calls for ordinance on citizen dividends from public parking lot solar

After solar became mandatory at public lots of 1,000 square meters or more, Incheon and iH plan about 40 MW; the cooperative wants guaranteed roles for co-ops in building, owning and running plants, not just a citizen fund

2026.10.23

Regions

Yeongdeok County's draft energy master plan proposes 200 MW of publicly led wind power on wildfire-scarred land and considers Sunlight Income Villages

Alongside 18 wind sites totalling 631.6 MW, the plan looks at offshore wind sites and wider solar; it aims to widen resident participation so generation profits reach residents and development gains are shared, with a final version due in December

2026.10.23

Regions

Riverhead, New York, nears completion of 7MW solar and 13.68MWh battery project on closed landfill, with 60% of bill credits going to more than 120 residents and small businesses

The town leases the land and receives 40% of the credits plus more than 150,000 dollars a year in rent; private developer CVE builds and runs it for 25 years

2026.10.23

Regions

Gongju accused of picking car-park solar developer without open competition, as audit questions process

Documents list 21, 10 and 7 sites in turn, and the city's own reply says leasing may earn less than running the plants itself; transport chief pledges lawful criteria

2026.10.22

Regions

Cheongju sets five strategies in third local energy plan for 2027-2031, backing citizen-participation renewables and RE100 industrial parks

Final briefing presents vision of an energy innovation city built by citizens and industry; consumption, participation, industry, system and convergence strategies to be refined with expert input before projects roll out in stages

2026.10.22

Regions

Daejeon-Chungnam Green Korea says only 1 of 30 car parks required to install solar has done so, urges Daejeon to adopt a renewables-first roadmap

Building just the 13 sites under review would add about 4,636 kW and 5.92 million kWh a year, enough for some 1,500 households; group demands a full rewrite of the hydrogen- and gas-heavy 7th regional energy plan

2026.10.22

Regions

Seocheon councillor Jo Seong-hun calls for checks on firms in the Janghang National Eco-Industrial Complex that run only solar panels and make nothing

At the annual administrative audit he urged the county to verify factory construction, production equipment, actual operation and jobs, check compliance with tenancy contracts and power-generation licence conditions with the relevant agencies, and act under law and contract where rules were broken

2026.10.22

Regions

Honam grid opens up to more renewables; Jeonnam Research Institute proposes linking Yeosu and Gwangyang industrial demand and resident benefit-sharing in one system

Government expects Honam's hosting capacity to grow by about 27 GW on the transmission side and 12 GW on the distribution side; spare capacity goes first to queued projects from October, with new connection applications from January 2027

2026.10.22

Regions

Gwangju's power self-sufficiency at 9.3% versus Jeonnam's 197.9%; Gwangju climate energy agency proposes three axes for linking energy across the integrated special city

Policy brief No. 14 reviews both areas' sixth regional energy plans; Gwangju is urban with households, commerce and transport at 78.6%, Jeonnam industrial with industry at 89.6%; agency urges starting with projects that are ready to break ground

2026.10.22

Regions

Changwon to reopen closed Jinhae sauna with income from solar on idle Deoksan landfill land

Sojukdo sauna shut in July after incinerator waste heat stopped; solar revenue to cover running costs and landfill expansion support funds to pay for renovation, with reopening targeted for July 2028

2026.10.22

Regions

Ganghwa's Giljeong-ri becomes Incheon's first sunlight income village with 2MW floating solar on a reservoir

Residents and Ganghwa Nambu Nonghyup jointly invest in the cooperative; revenue to go to local-currency dividends and a shared welfare fund

2026.10.22

Regions

Yeonggwang County aims to pay residents 200,000 won a year from renewable energy profits starting 2027

Funding would come from offshore wind benefit-sharing payments and developer donations; reliance on donations has the county discussing a new social security program with the government, while 195 kW of village solar feeds village funds

2026.10.21

Regions

Gokseong signs onshore wind and solar pact with SK Eternix and Yuseon, weighs a residents' fund

Companies to handle development and siting, county to provide administrative support; capacity, cost, sites and profit-sharing not yet set

2026.10.21

Regions

Construction starts on 800kW Sunlight Income Village solar at Yangpyeong's Gaegun park, with profits going to a village fund

County receives about 1.7 billion won under Han River water system fund pilot; completion targeted for end of 2026

2026.10.21

Regions

Gimhae to put solar on 14 public car parks and a water plant, recycling power revenue into new projects

2,700kW across car parks by 2028, seven city-run and seven leased to private firms; 500kW at Samgye water treatment plant targets December completion

2026.10.20

Regions

Goyang plans citizen-participation sunlight pension using solar on 41 public parking lots

About 8,875kW possible and about 2 billion won in annual revenue expected; research and public site survey under way

2026.08.18

Regions

Incheon, the most power-surplus region in Korea, urged to set up an energy corporation for renewables

Self-sufficiency of 241.7% in 2020; a councilor and a professor propose resident shareholding and local hiring

2021.11.03