Korea South-East Power Co. (KOSEP) put Yeongheung Thermal Power Unit 6 into commercial service in November 2014, bringing the combined capacity of the power company to 9,976MW, ushering in the “Era of 10,000MW.” The figure is the biggest among five Korean power companies. Seven months have passed after the unit was put online, serving as a major pipeline to supply one-fourth of electricity demand in the Seoul and Gyeonggi areas.
KOSEP has also demonstrated that it is an example of the capacity to operate power facilities — coming No. 1 in the categories capacity, lowest power facility stoppage rate and lowest power generation unit price.
An insufficient power supply and controversies over the construction of power transmission lines have emerged as major uncertainties facing the Seoul metropolitan area, as the National Assembly Trade, Industry and Energy Committee recently received a briefing on the 7th national power supply master plan. It will be finalized by June. The Yeongheung Thermal Power Units 7 & 8 projects have been stalled, as the Environment Ministry’s go-ahead on the projects, which are part of the 6th national power supply master plan, is pending. The public is keenly interested in whether of not the projects are included in the upcoming 7th national power supply master plan.
The government pushed ahead with a plan to construct large-sized thermal power complexes in coastal areas near Seoul to ensure energy security and a stable power supply in 1989. This is the reason the Yeongheung Thermal Power Complex was established on Yeongheung Island as an area from which power is transmitted over marine transmission towers.
Starting with the Samcheonpo Thermal Power Complex, the nation’s first 800MW-class coal-fired plant, KOSEP has introduced cutting edge technologies, including technology associated with the construction of the nation’s first 800MW coal-fired unit.
Yeongheung Thermal Power Unit 6, with a 5,080ME capacity, is now supplying 25 percent of the Seoul metropolitan area’s electricity demand. The unit uses bituminous coal as a fuel instead of LNG, saving energy costs equivalent to some 2 trillion won annually. It contributes to not only the strengthening of national competitiveness by saving foreign currency, but also to keeping electricity charges lower.
The problem is that the Seoul metropolitan area accounts for 40 percent of the national’s total electricity consumption, but takes up 25 percent in terms of power generation. The gap is filled with a flexible power supply being generated below the Chungcheong areas. The government has to come up with steps to solve limited transmission to cope with rising electricity demand from the Seoul metropolitan area. LNG’s combined cycle power plants take up more than 60 percent of power generation facilities in the area. Power blackouts are feared to take place in the event LNG is not supplied adequately.
The construction of Yeongheung Thermal Power Units 7 & 8 is needed now that their transmission lines have been built. The projects also need to be considered for their environmental aspect.
KOSEP President Honored with Top Award at 18th Electricity Culture Grand Prix
KOSEP President Huh Yeop won the top award at the 18th Electricity Culture Grand Prix in recognition of his contributions to the development of the Korean electricity industry.
Huh has been in the electricity field for some 37 years since. In 1987 he began his career at Korea Electric Power Corp. He has been credited for his dedicated contributions to the development of the industry based on a strong sense of mission.
“It’s so pleasing and a great honor for me to receive the top award at the most prestigious Electricity Culture Grand Prix,” he said. He recalled the 1970s, when transmission was limited to insufficient electricity infrastructure when he entered KEPCO after completing a major in electrical engineering at Hanyang University.
Huh climbed the company ladder to head KEPCO’s construction division since beginning his career at KEPCO in 1978. He obtained a master’s degree in business administration from Dongkuk University.
KOSEP is the first power company to introduce a performance sharing system with SMEs. KOSEP has become the first Korean power company to implement entrepreneurship in which each team, department and site office are assigned goals and given autonomy in their budgets and personnel transfers. KOSEP has also become the first public enterprise to implement total productive maintenance (TPM), a method for improved machine availability through better utilization of maintenance and production resources.
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