Summer Power Peak, Saved by Solar

Renewable energy facilities have surpassed a total of 32GW, playing a significant role during summer peak electricity hours. It was confirmed that solar power generation supplied the most electricity during the period of maximum air conditioner use. This proves that solar power has greatly contributed to stabilizing summer electricity supply.

Unlike the past when rising summer temperatures led to increased power consumption and high concerns about blackouts, such worries have now diminished thanks to solar power generation. The contribution of solar power can be monitored in real-time through the Korea Power Exchange app, which means that the 'peak load response' theory, discussed since the early days of solar power deployment, has become a reality. Dispelling past fears of power shortages, solar power is establishing itself as a crucial pillar of stable power supply.

Currently, South Korea's total power generation capacity is approximately 160GW, of which solar power accounts for 32GW, or about 20%. While this is a significant share in terms of capacity, when converted to actual power generation, it still remains less than 10% of the total. This highlights the limitations of intermittent renewable energy and the low flexibility of existing baseload power sources as major factors hindering grid stability.

The issue of solar power output curtailment was fully foreseeable, and attempts to prepare countermeasures like batteries or smart grids were not absent. However, as the pace of deployment accelerated faster than expected due to falling prices of solar and batteries, preparations were relatively insufficient. The speed of technological development and infrastructure construction failed to keep up with the rapid expansion of solar power deployment, leading to the side effect of output curtailment.

According to 2025 statistics, the amount of output curtailment relative to total solar power generation is approximately 0.3%, which is not very high as a total percentage. This figure is also low compared to other countries. However, despite this low average, output curtailment frequently occurs for operators in specific regions, which is a problem.

Output curtailment due to power grid instability frequently occurs for specific operators in specific regions, and the lack of transparency, where operators cannot precisely know why they are being curtailed, is a problem. This issue arises from the Korea Electric Power Corporation's distribution network operations, forcing operators to unilaterally halt generation. Especially for operators who started their businesses with bank loans, unpredictable output curtailment leads to reduced generation and difficulties in loan repayment, causing critical economic losses. This situation undermines the stability of solar power businesses and discourages investment.

The fundamental issue of energy security related to renewable energy lies in power grid control. If we use products from countries with whom we have poor relations, especially equipment related to IT or power grid control, it is considered a direct energy security threat that could remotely shut down or disrupt the power grid. However, solar panels themselves do not have communication functions, so the origin of the panels is considered to have a low direct correlation with security threats.

From a long-term perspective, relying on a specific country for over 90% of renewable energy infrastructure is risky. Therefore, to ensure price competitiveness, it is necessary to allow the import of simple renewable energy components without communication functions, such as from China. However, it is recommended to maintain some key supply chain full-chains domestically to avoid being swayed by specific countries in the future. This is a strategy that considers both economic efficiency and national security.

Conventional crystalline silicon solar cells are considered to have reached their efficiency limits. To overcome this, researchers are developing tandem solar cells that combine a new material called perovskite with existing silicon solar cells, projected to achieve high efficiencies of over 35%. Currently, countries are fiercely competing in technological development for the commercialization of these perovskite tandem solar cells.

Higher solar cell efficiency reduces the required installation area, leading to land cost savings. This, in turn, results in lower overall system costs. Additionally, increased efficiency opens up possibilities for applying solar cells in various locations, such as vertical building surfaces. This new high-efficiency solar cell structure offers the advantage of compensating for sufficient generation even in applications with lower output.

The biggest obstacle to the expansion of the energy efficiency market is the difference in perceived urgency between companies that spend money and governments that implement policies. From a company's perspective, there is a definite upfront investment of 10 billion won, while future profits are uncertain, causing hesitation in investment. If the payback period extends beyond 5-7 years, companies tend to avoid such investments. Therefore, to activate the energy efficiency market, public mechanisms that can bridge this uncertainty of future profits are essential. Many countries with well-developed public mechanisms have successfully expanded their energy efficiency markets.

The proliferation of artificial intelligence (AI) demands immense computational processing, and the associated resource costs are expected to be substantial in the future. Currently, these AI computing costs are not fully apparent, but in the long term, they could significantly impact electricity rates. In-depth consideration and preparation are needed for the possibility that increased electricity consumption due to AI could lead to a burden on electricity bills for the public and businesses. Social discussion on how to manage and bear these energy cost issues is crucial.