Solar power production is still in the shadows in Korea

Solar energy is still a largely untapped source in Korea. Last year, alternative energy accounted for only 2.1 percent of the total energy produced here, and solar power was a meager 0.06 percent. Solar energy is in the pilot stage ― it is used for street lights and on certain small islands or in research laboratories. According to Lee Tae-gu, an architectural engineering professor at Semyung University, the reason behind the underdevelopment is because the government and energy firms are taking a short-term view. “The government is very short-sighted and thinks that solar energy is less economic and less efficient than fossil fuels,” he said. The government’s interest in solar energy, however, is not entirely absent. In May, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy launched a task force on the issue, mainly due to high international oil prices. Its main plan is to distribute and install 100,000 solar energy cell systems by 2011. The ministry said that it hopes to raise the percentage of solar energy to 2 percent of the total. “In developed countries like Japan and Germany, solar energy is considered a very important part of [overall] energy development,” Mr. Lee said. “The gap between those countries and Korea is becoming wider.” In Kyoto, Japan, many buildings are covered with solar cell pads. On top of the 22-story headquarters building of the cell phone manufacturer Kyocera, there are 1,896 solar cell pads. This building generates 180,000 kilowatts a year and is the largest solar energy generating system in the world among individual buildings. Kyocera says it saves about 40,000 liters of oil annually and prevents 970,000 tons of carbon dioxide from being emitted into the air. “Our main business at the moment is communications, mobile phones and cameras, but in the long term, the core of our growth engine will be solar energy,” said Koto Masaharu, marketing director of Kyocera’s solar energy division. The company is also planning to export solar energy systems to Korea. Another example of solar energy usage is Freiburg, Germany. The small city with a population of 200,000 has 500 buildings and houses installed with solar cell pads. Both Japan and Germany are leaders in solar energy. In Japan last year, 160,000 housholds were equipped with solar energy and the government plans to increase that number to 1.6 million by 2010. Germany has more long-term plans to increase solar energy use to 40 percent of all energy usage by 2050. “We will lend people money to install solar energy generators at no interest rate and then let them repay over a period of seven years,” said Thomas Dressel, solar energy specialist at the environment protection agency of Freiburg. “The core system in solar energy is technology used in making semiconductors,” said Kim Dong-hwan, head of the Solar Cell Research Center at Korea University. “If the government supports research and development, companies can pursue solar energy as a next-generation business. The market potential is very high as well.” by Special Reporting Team