Secured supply of more than 100GW of electricity this winter… “Stable power supply”

This winter, due to the steady increase in generators such as nuclear power plants and renewable energy, a supply capacity of more than 100GW was secured for all parking lots during the power supply and demand policy period for the first time in history.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced the ‘Winter Power Supply and Demand Outlook and Measures’ on the 1st and announced that the power supply and demand this winter will be stable while inspecting preparations with power-related organizations.

In addition, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (“the Ministry”) and power-related organizations plan to designate the period from the 4th to February 29th of next year as the ‘winter power supply and demand response period’ and operate a supply and demand response situation room together with related organizations.

In addition, in the event of an emergency, the Ministry plans to immediately activate a disaster response team chaired by the Second Vice Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy to support rapid recovery.

Electricity demand this winter is expected to peak between 91.3GW and 97.2GW on the third weekday of January, when temperatures are usually the lowest.

Recently, the frequency of surprise cold waves and heavy snowfall has increased, and the volatility of electricity demand has intensified due to the increase in renewable energy, leading to an increase in the maximum demand forecast range. Last winter, the highest electricity demand of all time was 94.5GW.

If the Arctic cold wave hits with snow piled up this winter, there is a possibility that electricity demand will be even higher, at 97.2GW.

In particular, the supply capacity in the third week of January next year, when the peak is expected, is expected to be 105.9GW, which is higher than last year’s peak.

If the maximum demand shows the standard forecast of 91.3GW, reserve capacity of 14.6GW is expected, but if the maximum demand increases to the upper limit forecast of 97.2GW, the reserve capacity can be lowered to 8.7GW.

Accordingly, the electric power authorities plan to manage supply and demand stably through additional spare resources secured in advance and test runs of new generators.

First, additional spare resources can be operated up to 7.7GW when reserve power is insufficient by increasing generator output, utilizing demand response resources (DR), and adjusting voltage downward.

In addition, the commissioning of Shinhanul Unit 2 (1.4GW) and Samcheok Blue Unit 1 (1.05GW) was planned to be utilized in January next year to contribute to power supply.

In order to save energy, the Ministry will promote demand management in which both the public and private sectors participate, and the Ministry will also proceed without a hitch with the plan to support vulnerable groups announced on November 2.

In particular, demand management secures the performance of demand management in the public sector through intensive management of energy-consuming areas and supports efficiency for vulnerable groups.

The private sector requests cooperation in energy saving, focusing on high-consuming workplaces and large buildings, and spreads a culture of saving through daily life-oriented promotions and campaigns.

The public sector implements energy saving measures such as complying with the indoor temperature of 18℃ in buildings using electric heating and secures implementation through active performance management.

In addition, the Ministry decided to promote energy efficiency improvement for vulnerable groups, including providing cost support such as energy vouchers and rate discounts, distributing high-efficiency devices, and improving insulation facilities.

In addition, for fuel supply, the Ministry preemptively secure the necessary quantities of bituminous coal and LNG in the winter, promote inter-institutional swaps and additional spot purchases, implement pre-inspection and reinforcement measures for facilities, and minimize damage by immediately operating a rapid recovery system in the event of a disaster.