Korean firm to build 280 MW of floating PV capacity

The infrastructure developer — which specializes in agricultural and rural community development projects — will accept proposals from prospective solar developers until October 12, according to an online statement. Companies may form consortia or submit proposals on their own.

If completed, the projects will be among the largest floating PV arrays in the world, with power generation expected to offset roughly 160,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions per year. In May, the world’s biggest floating PV plant thus far was connected to the grid in Huainan, a city in China’s Anhui province.

Naju-based Korea Rural Community Corp. plans to install 200 MW of PV capacity on two lakes near the city of Dangjin, Chungcheongnam province. It also wants to install 80 MW of floating solar on a 96-hectare site at the southern end of the Korean peninsula in Goheung county, Jeollanam province.

The opportunity to build floating PV projects in South Korea has already drawn the likes of segment specialist Ciel et Terre, which is known for its proprietary Hydrelio floating platforms. The French company — which recently started building a 70 MW solar project in China’s Anhui province — installed a 494.5 kW solar array on an irrigation dam in South Korea's Chungcheonbuk province in early 2015.

In early 2016, state-run Korea Water Resources Corp (K-water) signed an agreement with LG Electronics to build floating PV projects on ponds and reservoirs throughout South Korea. K-water has said that it sees the potential to build more than 1 GW of floating solar by 2022.

Last week, South Korea’s Solkiss revealed plans to install 2.67 MW of floating solar on reservoirs near Hwaseong, Gyeonggi province. The projects are scheduled for completion by November. The solar developer — based in Gimje, Jeollabuk province — also announced plans in March to develop 500 MW of floating solar capacity in Vietnam’s Yen Bai province.