In the past five years, Chinese solar facilities have increased rapidly, and subsidies paid to Chine..

In the past five years, Chinese solar facilities have increased rapidly, and subsidies paid to Chinese solar companies have increased sharply. While the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy has significantly increased subsidies for solar installation next year, this trend is expected to continue.

According to data submitted by Cho Eun-hee’s office of the People’s Power on the 14th by the Ministry of Industry, subsidies to Chinese solar facilities amounted to 29.1 billion won last year. This is a 10-fold increase in just five years compared to 2.9 billion won in subsidies for Chinese solar power in 2019. The share of Chinese solar energy in total solar subsidies also jumped from 5% in 2019 to 15% last year. By the first half of this year, subsidies for Chinese solar energy were 10 billion won, accounting for 16% of the total subsidies.

The Ministry of Industry is subsidizing the installation of solar power facilities in three areas: residential, building, and convergence. In the case of single-family houses, 792,000 won per kW is paid for facilities less than 2 kilowatts (kW), and 599,000 won is paid for facilities more than 2 kW to less than 3 kW. Subsidies are also provided for solar power for buildings such as livestock and industrial complexes.

It is interpreted that the number of Chinese solar facilities subject to subsidies has increased, and the amount of subsidies paid has also increased. The subsidized capacity of Chinese solar facilities, which was only 3 megawatts (MW) in 2019, increased more than tenfold to 35MW last year. Subsidies for Chinese-made solar power have increased in most buildings. The amount of subsidies for solar power for buildings made in China jumped from 1.1 billion won in 2019 to 11 billion won last year.

As the government has decided to greatly increase the budget to support the supply of new and renewable energy next year, it is predicted that the amount of subsidies paid to Chinese solar power could increase further. The Ministry of Industry has set aside the related budget for next year at 21.2 billion won. This is a 20% increase from the related budget of 168.2 billion won this year.

Representative Cho Eun-hee said, “The government is expected to expand subsidies by emphasizing the speed of solar power supply, and the subsidies should not have adverse effects on shaking the domestic industrial base and promoting Chinese distribution,” adding, “The policy should be pursued from a mid- to long-term energy security perspective rather than rushing to short-term performance.”