Jang Daul

After seven years of discussion, the Special Act on Offshore Wind has finally passed the National Assembly's plenary session on Thursday.

Concidentally, the day marks the 50th anniversary of the introduction of wind power in Korea, making it a truly historic day. I hope that the passage of this act will serve as a turning point for offshore wind to play a greater role in our society's energy transition.

The act marks a significant shift in the country’s renewable energy policy by introducing a government-led site development system, addressing the inefficiencies of the previous "open-door" model used by private developers. The new law aims to streamline offshore wind deployment by allowing the government to designate planned offshore wind zones, ensuring development occurs in optimal locations for better community acceptance and environmental safeguards. It also seeks to overcome bureaucratic hurdles, as developers previously had to navigate up to 29 different regulations across 10 ministries, often resulting in projects taking more than eight years to complete.

Despite Korea’s considerable offshore wind potential — estimated at 624 gigawatts by the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) — progress has been slow. Korea's cumulative offshore wind capacity currently stands at........

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