Delicate ‘Governance’ is a condition of success in energy transition.

Wonyoung Lee | Professor of Suwon University

In the fall of 2015, I left Korea for a while and visited Germany to see if there would be a way to revitalize decommissioning nuclear power plants. Dr. W Neumann, the head of energy policy at Frankfurt City, praised Korea’s technology by showing out his Korean smartphone. “Energy transition is same. “Which country will make the energy transition If Korea with excellent technology does not go ahead?”

Professor Lee Pil-ryul (Korea National Open University), who tests the passive house, a house that prevents energy leakage by preventing heat from leaking to the outside, said, “In terms of technology alone, we have the ability to shut down all nuclear power plants in 15 years and realize energy transition.

The problem is governance. Energy transition is different from general administration. After citizens make decisions, if the action works within the market economy, the results that come after it are a unique area of ​​realizing public values. There must be a delicate “governance,” which literally means “to help each other”.

In 2012, I visited the city hall of Hameln, Germany, the “city of fairy tales” with a population of 50,000. There was a red painted roof and a yellow painted roof on their home page. When the solar system is installed according to the left side of the roof or the inclination, it is displayed in red if it is economical and yellow if it is not economical. Citizens who see their homes in red ask a city hall. The city hall’s officials kindly explain the citizen’s roof. They provide administrative, technical and financial advice for the installation. This is the delicate ‘Governance’.

When I took the subway in Hamburg, I noticed an advertisement for a wind power company saying, “If you invest in wind power, you will pay an 8% annual return.”  Green finance is working properly. Green Finance is also active in remodeling energy-saving buildings.

The Korean government’s FIT(Feed-in Tariff) is the same as guaranteeing the purchase price of grain in the agricultural sector. It is the same as paying a time deposits interest at a fixed interest rate, so it can promote stable energy transition. In the past, it had a supplier-oriented policy, and this government entered the direction of FIT. But there is still a long way to go. The installation price, purchase price, and guarantee period are competitively set, but there is a lack of friendly governance such as financial planning, licensing, and mediation. The city of Seoul, which has worked hard to switch energy early, such as reducing the number of nuclear power plants, is moving rapidly, providing support benefits to small businesses. Regional local government with more space and a vision for rural residents are more advantageous.

In Japan, 52 nuclear power plants have been all-stopped for 5 years since 2011, but the energy situation is not bad. Large factories and facilities were able to run their own power generation facilities, and above all, citizens moved by the delicate governance of local governments in response to energy transition.

Germany has a high proportion of wind power, but nowadays the solar power is also high. It is said that it can handle up to one-third of electricity supply during peak demand. Germany has been doing it despite the fact that the latitude in higher than ours so sunlight shines at an angle. It has been supplied mainly on the roof, not on the bare ground like us. I feel like the administration of Korea has been neglecting energy transition so far.

Dr. Neumann is likely to point out again. ‘The Korean people have now succeeded in fighting the difficult COVID-19 pandemic. Korea is setting an example for the global village. Energy transition is not as difficult as this.’

Original Article >> http://news.khan.co.kr/kh_news/khan_art_view.html?art_id=202007070300005#csidx901a8d9f875687baa4852607b6b7ac8

Translated by Lee Seungeun

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Categories: Media Reports