South Korea switches on 47.2 MW floating PV project
AI Analysis
Summary
The Ihma Dam solar project is South Korea's largest floating PV array located alongside a multi-purpose dam. The project features a resident-participation model allowing those living within a one kilometer radius to share profits from its power supply.
<p class="p1"><span class="s1">The Ihma Dam solar project is South Korea's largest floating PV array located alongside a multi-purpose dam. The project features a resident-participation model allowing those living within a one kilometer radius to share profits from its power supply.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The 47.2 MW Ihma Dam floating solar power plant has begun operating in </span><a href="https://www.pv-magazine.com/region/south-korea/" rel="noopener" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">South Korea</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p>
<p>Located at the Imha Dam east of the city of Andong in Gyeongsangbuk-do province, the solar array is the largest floating PV facility located alongside a multi-purpose dam in South Korea. The dam is home to a 50 MW hydropower station, allowing the complex to now alternate between <span style="font-weight: 400;">transmitting floating solar power during the day and hydropower at night.</span></p>
<p>Plans to add the solar array to the dam first took shape in 2021, when the project was designated as South Korea's first renewable energy integrated complex. Electricity business approval was secured in 2023 and construction of the solar system began last year. A completion ceremony was held in late September, with total<span style="font-weight: 400;"> project costs reaching KRW 73.2 billion ($50.2 million).</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The project has been co-developed by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) and Korea Water Resources Corporation alongside the Gyeongsangbuk-do Province and Andong City, while Top Solar acted as the engineering, procurement and construction contractor.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Scotra, a Seoul-based specialist in the design, manufacture and installation of floating solar structures, provided the core floating technology onto which the modules, provided by Korean manufacturer <a href="https://www.pv-magazine.com/2024/07/11/shinshung-eg-secures-47-mw-module-order-for-floating-solar-in-south-korea/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Shinsung E&G</a>, were mounted.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The solar system consists of 16 floating structures that are arranged into patterns resembling both the Korean flag, Taegeukgi, and Mugunghwa, the country’s national flower.</span></p>
<a href="https://www.pv-magazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/KOREA-IMHA-DAM-FLOATING-SOLAR-3.png"><img alt="" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail" height="280" src="https://www.pv-magazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/KOREA-IMHA-DAM-FLOATING-SOLAR-3-280x280.png" tabindex="0" width="280" /></a>
<a href="https://www.pv-magazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/KOREA-IMHA-DAM-FLOATING-SOLAR-2.png"><img alt="" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail" height="280" src="https://www.pv-magazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/KOREA-IMHA-DAM-FLOATING-SOLAR-2-280x280.png" tabindex="0" width="280" /></a>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The combined solar-hydro power plant is now projected to generate around 61 GWh of clean electricity annually, enough to supply approximately 22,000 households, equivalent to 27% of all households in Andong.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">A spokesperson for Scotra told </span><b>pv magazine</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> the project adopted a resident-participation model, with 33 local villages investing through a dedicated legal entity. </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Over 20 years, approximately KRW 22.2 billion in revenue will be returned to the community,” the company said. “This so-called ‘Sunlight Pension’ is expected to increase local residents’ income and contribute to regional economic revitalization.”</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Details available on KHNP’s website add that the model will benefit around 4,500 residents living within a 1-km radius of the project to share the profit from its power supply.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">South Korea installed </span><a href="https://www.pv-magazine.com/2025/01/15/south-koreas-new-solar-installations-hit-2-5-gw-in-2024/" rel="noopener" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">2.5 GW</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> of new solar capacity last year, bringing its cumulative PV capacity to more than 29.5 GW, according to the Korean Energy Agency.</span></p>