President Kim Yong-jin of Korea East-West Power (EWP).
The Korea East-West Power Co. (EWP) has signed an MOU on wood biomass planting, processing and use with the Korea Forestry Promotion Institute (KOFPI) and the Indonesian state-run forest company Perum Perhutani.
The agreement reached by EWP, KOFPI and Perum Perhutani at the Forestry Vision Center in Yeouido, Seoul, on July 13 follows up measures of expanding biomass forest plantation, discussed during the Korean-Indonesian summit in May 2016. The deal takes on significance since the three entities have created a foothold to establish a new business model on biomass fuel and have synergetic effects through collaboration.
The business model calls for expanding the afforestation in Semarang, Indonesia, created by KOFPI, to 20,000 ha. It involves an integrated system ranging from the planting and afforestation of forest species for biomass fuel to processing, producing and importing. KOFPI is implementing a pilot project to afforest a 2,000-hectare area in Semarang, Indonesia.
EWP and KOFPI have been credited with spearheading a project to secure and utilize wood biomass fuel, which has emerged as one of the new and renewable energy sources to brace for the inauguration of the Post 2020 Climate Change.
Under the agreement, EWP and KOFPI have paved the way for Korean SMEs with expertise in processing wood biomass fuel to explore overseas markets. The deal is expected to reap 50 billion won in annual sales and create about 500 jobs.
Coal Storage Facility Gets Photovoltaic Power Facility on the Rooftop
EWP dedicated a 3.4MW photovoltaic power plant on the rooftop of an indoor coal storage facility, the largest capacity of its kind, at the Dangjin Thermal Power Complex in Dangjin, Chungchengnam-do, on June 30.
Among those on hand at the event were Acting President Park Hee-sung of Korea East-West Power Co., and officials from EWP and KEPCO KPS.
The government provides a weighted value equivalent to 1.5 times when issuing renewable energy certificates in the case of utilizing the existing structures to spread the supply of new and renewable energies.
The photovoltaic power plant was built on the rooftop of a coal storage structure that accommodates 600,000 tons of coal for Dangjin Thermal Power Units 9 and 10. It is capable of producing 4,345MWh of power annually and supplying it to about 1,000 households. It has an effect of reducing 2,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually or planting 12,000 pine trees aged 20 years.
The project, which broke ground last December, cost 5.1 billion won. It involved the establishment of poles of supporting solar modules, solar modules, and an electric room designed to control power converters. The dedication ceremony took place after the photovoltaic power plant undergone a trial operation. EWP plans to continue investments into eco-friendly power generation using existing structures based on the experiences and knowhow on the rooftop photovoltaic power facilities the power company accumulated in accordance with the government¡¯s policies to expand the supply of new and renewable energies.
The KOFPI has joined hands with Indonesia¡¯s state-run Perum Perhutani to carry out wooden biomass plantation projects since 2013 and it is planning to create a 2,000 hectare biomass plantation by 2017.
Korea East-West Power will bring in 15,000 tons of wooden biomass for tests in 2017 and gradually increase the quantity after analyzing the economic feasibility through tests, including combustion.