Annual Income of 3 Million Won Per Household... Government to Cut Transmission Towers by 40% and Establish 'Solar Income Villages'

Towers Reduced from 4,723 to 2,509: Integration of Existing and New Lines Cuts 2,214 Towers
Underground Transmission Lines Considered for Densely Populated Areas Including Daejeon, Jangseong, Sejong, and Cheongju
"Grid Solar Income Villages" Nea

As 'megaprojects' such as semiconductor clusters and data centers—which are expected to require massive amounts of electricity—are being pushed forward one after another, the government has announced plans to reduce the number of newly built transmission towers by up to 40% during the construction of the national main transmission grid. Additionally, the government will expand underground cabling in densely populated areas. Around villages located near transmission lines, 'Grid Solar Income Villages' will be established to return profits from solar power generation back to the residents. The strategy is to expand the transmission grid in line with growing power demand from high-tech industries like semiconductors and data centers, while minimizing the impact on local communities through tangible compensation and participation, thereby easing regional conflict.

On the morning of September 15, Minister of Climate, Energy and Environment Kim Seonghwan delivered a report to a Cabinet meeting outlining these measures to enhance public acceptance of the transmission network construction process.

Recently, as electricity demand—centered on advanced industries like semiconductors and data centers—has rapidly increased, and the adoption of renewable energy has also scaled up, timely expansion of the power grid has emerged as a critical issue. Because power generation facilities are located outside the Seoul metropolitan area, but large-scale demand is concentrated in the capital region, there has been a continued need to expand long-distance transmission networks. However, there has been considerable public opposition to these projects during their construction.

The government is planning a transition from the current one-way power grid—where electricity produced in provincial areas is sent to the capital region—to a 'local generation, local consumption' system. Power demand from new projects in non-capital regions is expected to total more than 14GW, including about 6GW for the Honam semiconductor industrial complex, 2.4GW for the Donghae data center, and 1GW for the Ulsan data center. However, the government acknowledges that at least some expansion of the grid, to meet the short-term increase in power demand in the capital area, is unavoidable.

Transmission Towers: From 4,723 to 2,509... Integration and Underground Cabling by Region

First, the government will reduce the number of towers by combining as many existing and new lines as possible. One method involves merging an existing two-circuit and a newly planned two-circuit power line into a single four-circuit tower, or installing two separate planned two-circuit lines together on a single four-circuit tower.

If this approach is fully applied to currently planned national grid projects, the number of transmission towers—originally planned to be 4,723—would decrease to 2,509. This reduction of 2,214 towers represents roughly 40%. The government plans to update relevant regulations so that, when new transmission lines are constructed, integration with existing lines is always considered first.

The regional integration plans are also taking shape. For the Sin-Gwangju to Sin-Imsil section, about 28km of the total 58km will integrate with existing lines, reducing 62 towers. Based on feedback from residents of Damyang and Imsil, the optimal route was confirmed last July. For the Sin-Jangseong to Sin-Jeongeup section, the plan considers reusing about 20km of the existing 154kV line in Gochang and Jeongeup, allowing for the integration of 70 towers.

For the Sin-Haenam to Sin-Jangseong section, about 35km—overlapping with the Sin-Haenam to Sin-Gangjin project in the Haenam and Gangjin areas—will be integrated, resulting in 92 fewer towers. For four lines from Gwangyang to Sin-Jincheon, including Gwangyang to Sin-Jangsu, Sin-Jangsu to Muju-Yeongdong, Muju-Yeongdong to Sin-Seowon, and Sin-Seowon to Sin-Jincheon, approximately 78% of their sections are being considered for integration with existing lines.

In densely populated areas, the government will expand underground cabling. For the Sin-Haenam to Sin-Jangseong section, the plan considers using 2.7km of a levee road in Naju, in conjunction with ongoing road expansion projects. For the Sin-Jangseong to Sin-Jeongeup section, the government is looking into installing joint electric conduits for the transformer output portion of the Sin-Jangseong substation and other densely populated areas of Jangseong-gun as part of other projects.

For the Sin-Gyeryong to Sin-Cheonan section, an underground cabling plan is being considered for about 10km within Daejeon's population-dense area. For the Saemangeum #2 to Sin-Cheongyang section, open areas in Iksan and urban regions of Gunsan and Cheongyang are under consideration, as are the densely populated regions of Sejong and Cheongju for the Sin-Seowon to Sin-Jincheon section. Additionally, for new 345kV substations, about 2km of the outgoing line will, as a rule, be built underground. This will be applied to substations in Sin-Jeongeup, Saemangeum #2, Sin-Cheonan, Sin-Cheongyang, Sin-Gyeryong, and Sin-Seowon.

Alternative routes bypassing current planned routes will also be explored. For the Sin-Jeongeup to Sin-Gyeryong section, last month, the site selection committee chose an alternative route avoiding about 8km that passes through a village for national merit award recipients and social welfare facilities in Seo-gu, Daejeon. For the Sin-Jeongeup to Saemangeum #2 section, plans will be adjusted to bypass or underground a 3.7km segment near cultural properties in Jeongeup.

'Solar Income Villages' Near Transmission Lines... Enhanced Compensation and Location Selection for Residents

The government is also working on ways to directly return the benefits of transmission network construction to local residents. Under the 'Special Act on Expanding the National Main Power Grid,' 2 billion won per kilometer in support funds paid to local governments in line-affected areas will be used to install 300kW to 1MW scale solar energy facilities in villages near the grid, creating 'Grid Solar Income Villages.'

Within this year, the enforcement ordinance of the Power Grid Special Act will be amended so that about two-thirds of local government support funds are distributed to adjacent areas and prioritized for village solar projects. According to government examples, if a 73km transmission line traverses 83 villages in five local government areas, 107.4 billion won out of 161 billion won in support funds could be invested in the surrounding region. If, for example, about 860kW of solar panels are installed in each village, the government estimates that each household (with an average of 38 households per village) could earn 3.4 million won per year.

In another example, if a 58km transmission line crosses 52 villages in four municipalities, distributing 77.3 billion won out of 116 billion won would allow solar installations of up to 1MW per village. Annual income per household, assuming an average of 39 households, is estimated at 3.85 million won. However, the actual amount of support funds may vary depending on the extent of underground cabling or changes in transmission routes.

Direct payments to residents living very close to transmission lines will also expand. For national grid projects, direct support will increase from 50% to 100%, while the existing 50% joint support will be maintained. For areas within 300 meters of a transmission line, the payment amount will be increased by 0.5 times; in areas with two overlapping transmission lines, payments will be doubled, and in areas with three or more, they will be tripled.

Resident participation in choosing locations will also increase. From the initial site selection stage, project briefings for residents will become mandatory, and the number of explanatory sessions during the operation of the site selection committee will be increased from two to three. Observing committee meetings, which is currently not permitted, will in principle become allowed. Meeting materials, excluding personal information, will also be released to residents after the meetings.

As a rule, at least two candidate routes will be prepared to expand residents' choice. If necessary, not only existing site selection committee members but also village residents will be able to form region-specific resident councils, enabling residents to review potential routes directly and submit them to the site selection committee. The government also plans to hold about 10 regional meetings between local residents and governments in areas such as Jeollanam-do, Jeollabuk-do, Chungcheongnam-do, Chungcheongbuk-do, and Gyeonggi-do.

Minister Kim stated, "The power grid is an essential national infrastructure that underpins the energy transition and the growth of advanced industries. We must strengthen communication with residents and share real benefits to reduce social conflict, while also expanding the power grid on schedule as needed. We will bolster cooperation with residents so that grid expansion can drive regional development."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.