Kolon Global inks Korea’s 1st private wind power supply deal

Kolon Global Corp., the leading South Korean wind farm developer, signed the country’s first private wind power supply deal with local companies to expand its eco-friendly business.

Kolon Global said on Monday it inked a power purchase agreement (PPA) to provide Iljin Group with up to 37 gigawatt hours (GWh) of renewable energy a year to be produced at a wind farm, which will be built in Taebaek, in the mountainous Gangwon Province, through a domestic energy supplier SK E&S Co. for 20 years.

“The contract, the country’s first private PPA in the wind farm industry, is significant as it indicates the private sector is increasing the supply of renewable energy,” said Kolon Global, the construction and trading unit of South Korea’s chemicals-to-textile conglomerate Kolon Group.

Shares in Kolon Global ended up 2.1% to 8,440 won ($6.2) in South Korea’s stock market, outperforming a 1.3% rise in the benchmark Kospi.

AIMS MORE DEALS TO SUPPLY RENEWABLE ENERGY TO EXPORTERS

Many South Korean companies have been struggling to secure renewable energy needs as small solar power providers dominate the domestic market, although global companies are requiring exporters to use clean energy, Kolon Global said.

Kolon Global aims to ink more PPAs with other companies as the company, which is producing 101.7 GWh from four wind parks in South Korea, plans to expand the business by ramping up the capacity to 1,000 GWh.

The company is establishing a position as a renewable energy business operator through both the construction and operation of wind farms.

“We aim to secure wind farm assets of 500 megawatts by 2030 to supply renewable energy of 1,000 GWh to local exporters,” said a Kolon Global official. “We will expand PPAs to wind farms nationwide and actively work to meet the renewable energy demand of exporters.”

Write to Hyeon-woo Oh at ohw@hankyung.com
 
Jongwoo Cheon edited this article.