South Korea has launched its master plan for offshore wind leasing, and is  preparing for its first series of large-scale offshore wind tenders. The new  roadmap was unveiled by the Trade, Industry and Energy Vice Minister  Namho Choe, during a conference last week with offshore wind companies in  Seoul. As part of the government strategy to expand renewable energy  distribution, the roadmap also seeks to strengthen the domestic offshore wind  supply chain. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) said the  plans are to start the wind power tenders this October, followed with at least  two more rounds until the first half of 2026. During the two-year period, the  government will auction at least 7-8 GW of offshore wind capacity. South  Korea expects to reach a wind power capacity of 18.3 GW by 2030. The  timing for competitive bidding has been moved up from its initial window in  the fourth quarter to the second quarter of each year. This will allow notice  of an additional tender to be released in Q4 if needed.In terms of bid  evaluation, the government will adopt a two-stage process. The first round  will assess the non-price attributes while the second one includes price  competition based on an evaluation of price attributes. When the first and  second round scores are added up, the bidder with the highest total score will  be selected as the winner. In addition, the government intends to increase the  score allotted to non-price criteria from the current 40 to 50 percent, as well  as incorporating aspects such as maintenance, economic security and use of  public works. This move has been interpreted as a measure to curb Chinese  imports of key offshore wind parts, including wind turbine blades. Instead, the  government will be favoring bids utilizing the domestic supply chain. “Our  offshore wind power projects are large in scale, but domestic technological  prowess in key equipment has not reached that of leading countries,” said a  MOTIE official. For the first time beginning this year, a bid market for  floating wind turbine projects will run concurrently with the existing one of  fixed wind turbine tenders. MOTIE is targeting public-sector participation, as  the government gears up for the launch of a public-led bid market in H1  2025. (ICE SEOUL)

Fonte notizia: The Maritime Executive