WG1 Workshop on Coal exit and beyond: Power supply security and repurposing of old power plant sites

On November 7, the Korean German Energy Partnership hosted a virtual workshop on "Coal Exit and Beyond: Energy Security and Reuse of Old Power Plant Sites" as part of the Working Group 1 "Energy Transition". Dr. Falk Bömeke (BMWK) and Yangtaek Moon (MOTIE) opened the workshop with remarks on the importance of coal phase-out to achieve climate goals. Moderated by Gunnar Will (adelphi), the discussions focused on four key issues: 

1.    Coal phase-out approaches: Dr. Julian Donaubauer (BMWK) and Ga-young Lee (MOTIE) outlined the different strategies. Germany provides incentives for early plant closures, while Korea has opted not to issue new licenses but to allow existing plants to operate for up to 30 years.

2.    Substituting coal: Dr. Felix Christian Matthes (Öko-Institut e.V.) and Jaewang Cho (Korea Power Exchange) highlighted the need for dispatchable generation to balance the increasing share of renewables. Both countries see hydrogen as an important energy source.

3.    Grid security: Prof. Dr. Hendrik Lens (Universität Stuttgart) and Kyungmin Lee (KEPCO) addressed the challenges to grid stability resulting from the integration of renewables, noting common issues despite different grid structures.

4.    Repurposing coal infrastructure: Timon Wehnert (Wuppertal Institut), Dr. Taehyun Kim (Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute), and Gerrit Koll (DLR) explored innovative ways to reuse coal assets, such as thermal storage power plants, with an emphasis on site-specific solutions. 

Overall, this workshop on coal phase-out in Korea and Germany highlighted the challenges, but also the opportunities, involved in the process of transforming the electricity system away from fossil fuels. If you are interested in learning more about this topic, you can download our study "Coal-Exit and Beyond: Structural Change and a Just Transition in Korea and Germany" here: energypartnership-korea.org/fileadmin/korea/media_elements/Structural_Change_and_a_Just_Transition_in_Korea_and_Germany_final.pdf