SOUTH KOREA

HEXICON IN SOUTH KOREA

Discover Hexicon’s floating offshore wind projects in South Korea, a key market aiming for 18,3 GW of offshore wind by 2030.

THE FLOATING OFFSHORE WIND MARKET IN SOUTH KOREA

South Korea aims to raise renewables’ share to 20% by 2030 and up to 35% by 2040, with the ambition to become carbon neutral by 2050. With a focus on solar and wind power, the country plans to install 42.7 GW of new solar and wind capacity by 2025. Due to the terrain, the only viable option to increase emission-free large energy output within 10 years is offshore wind, as solar and onshore wind are limited. The government does not expect more nuclear to be installed before 2037. Therefore, South Korea’s ambitious targets make it a key market for floating offshore wind, and Hexicon is at the forefront of this opportunity

PROJECT PLANNING IN SOUTH KOREA

South Korea’s Offshore Wind Power Competitive Bidding Roadmap accelerates offshore wind develeopment, aiming for 18.3 GW by 2030. In August 2024 the South Korean government announced separate auctions for floating wind in 2025-2026.  Streamlined permitting processes and a two-stage bid evaluation offer a clearer path for developers to advance projects quickly and efficiently, which opens up great opportunities for Hexicon.

HEXICONKOREA AND MUNMUBARAM

Hexicon is involved in two major joint ventures in South Korea, HexiconKorea and MunmuBaram, aimed at developing large-scale floating offshore wind projects.

HexiconKorea, a partnership with Coens, offers support for the floating offshore wind market through staffing and service agreements. Meanwhile, MunmuBaram, a collaboration with Shell*, is advancing a 1,125 GW project off the coast of Ulsan, targeting significant renewable energy production for millions of households. Both ventures are pivotal in supporting South Korea’s renewable energy transition.

*On the 22nd of February, 2024, Hexicon signed a Sales- and Purchase Agreement with Shell to acquire full stake of the MunmuBaram Project. From the 1st of July, 2024, Hexicon is formally operating the project. A change of control application has been submitted to the South Korean authorities that is currently being processed.

OUR SOUTH KOREAN PROJECTS

MUNMUBARAM

The MunmuBaram project was originated by Hexicon in 2018. In 2019 Shell acquired 80% of the stakes in the project. The project area is located between 65 to 80 kilometres off the coast of the city of Ulsan in southeast South Korea.

In 2022, the South Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy granted the project three electricity business licenses (EBLs) to progress the development. The project targets an output of 1,125 MW and aims to be a commercial-scale floating ‎wind farm delivering clean and affordable electricity to many Korean households and industries.

KEY FACTS

JV MunmuBaram

PARTNER (Previously Shell)

CAPACITY Up to 1125 MW

HEXCION SHARE 26,3%

LATEST MILESTONES

Since 2019, the project has been carrying out the groundwork, such as the wind data measurement campaigns, preparing the project for FID. In September 2021, MunmuBaram was the first floating offshore wind developer in South Korea to complete the required geotechnical and geophysical surveys. In 2022, Vestas was selected as the preferred turbine supplier for the project. The agreement includes the supply of turbines as well as a 20-year service and maintenance contract. In 2024 MunmuBaram received approval for its Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) from Korea’s Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. This is an important milestone for the project as approval is required to participate in the new wind power auction system in South Korea. The next expected milestone is a TSA (Transmission Service Agreement) with the local grid company. The project continues its accelerated development both on the technical and permitting fronts.

Pohang

Pohang is an 800MW-1,000MW project owned and managed by HexiconKorea (60%) and other local Korean companies (40%). HexiconKorea is, in turn, a joint venture between Hexicon AB and Coens, established in 2018.

The Pohang project is planned in the area of Gyeongsangbuk-do (Pohang 02 and 03), located about 16.7 kilometres from the southeast coast of South Korea. As the water depth is over 90 m, floating offshore wind is a great alternative for producing stable, sustainable energy for the Korean community. Once completed, the Pohang project will have the capacity to power up to 800 000 – 1,000 000 homes.

KEY FACTS

JV Pohang

PARTNER Coens and other

CAPACITY Up to 800 MW

HEXCION SHARE 29%

LATEST MILESTONES

The Pohang project has received all necessary seabed permits and has therefore secured the selected sea area for the construction. Next milestone will be to install LIDAR for a one-year measurement campaign.

YEONGWANG

YEONGWANG: In 2022 Hexicon divested its shares in the Yeongwang YA02 project.

In June 2022 Hexicon Korea signed a Sales and Purchase Agreement with an undisclosed energy company for the entire Yeongwang Project, an offshore wind project about 50 kilometres off the southwest coast of South Korea. HexiconKorea thereby sold off its 40 percent stake in the 1200 MW project.

Hexicon Korea is a joint venture between Hexicon and Korean company COENS Co, of which Hexicon holds 49%.

The purchase agreement was followed by a service contract agreement, under which Hexicon Korea will provide engineering services to the project from then on.

KEY FACTS

JV Hexicon Korea

PARTNER Undisclosed

CAPACITY 1200 MW

HEXCION SHARE 0% (sold 40%)

LATEST MILESTONES

The divestment of Hexicon’s project shares was carried out in June 2022.