Korea Midland Power Builds West Coast Offshore Wind Belt for Carbon Neutrality

Korea Midland Power, a state-owned power generation company, is leading the nation's push toward carbon neutrality and carbon-free energy transition through offshore wind development, a key government priority under the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) framework.

As the phased retirement of coal-fired power plants becomes reality, the company plans to establish itself as a core hub for the carbon neutrality roadmap through the "West Coast Offshore Wind Belt" stretching from Jeju to Sinan in South Jeolla Province and Boryeong in South Chungcheong Province.

The foundation of Korea Midland Power's offshore wind strategy is the Jeju Hallim Offshore Wind Farm, which began full operations in the first half of last year. Located off the coast of Hallim-eup in Jeju City, the 100MW facility represents a major project with total investment of approximately 630 billion won. The farm operates 18 wind turbines rated at 5.56MW each, generating about 234GWh of electricity annually.

The Sinan Ui Offshore Wind project, where the company is currently concentrating its enterprise-wide capabilities, boasts the largest scale and impact among domestic projects. The wind farm is being constructed in waters spanning approximately 68.7 square kilometers southwest of Ui Island in Sinan County, South Jeolla Province. The facility will have a generation capacity of 390MW with total project costs reaching approximately 3.4 trillion won. As of February this year, Korea Midland Power approved equity investment of approximately 96.1 billion won, securing financial stability and completing preparations to begin main construction.

The publicly-led Boryeong Offshore Wind project in Boryeong, South Chungcheong Province, is a mega-scale initiative symbolizing the energy transition at the Boryeong Thermal Power Complex, the company's flagship facility. Planned as a large-scale complex with approximately 1GW capacity, the project is expected to require total investment exceeding 6 trillion won. The initiative aims to address power supply gaps and regional economic contraction following the retirement of aging coal-fired units Boryeong 1 and 2.

Korea Midland Power is focusing on offshore wind because it offers higher utilization rates compared to solar power and enables large-scale capacity expansion, making it a key power source capable of supplementing baseload generation.

"Completing the West Coast Offshore Wind Belt is a responsibility of our times that we must fulfill as a state energy company," said Lee Young-jo, CEO of Korea Midland Power. "Through projects including Sinan Ui and Boryeong, we will build a clean energy ecosystem that coexists with local communities."