From sea breezes to clean energy

Creating a tailwind for offshore wind in South Korea

South Korea is taking ambitious measures to make its energy supply more sustainable. An important step is the Jeonnam 1 Offshore Wind Farm, which is situated off the coast of Shinan County in Jeonnam Province in the southwestern part of South Korea.  

Jeonnam 1 represents the country’s first commercial offshore wind energy project and comprises ten wind turbine generators (WTGs), which generate 99 MW of energy.

The water depth at the site ranges from 5 to 20 metres, with monopile foundations featuring monopiles with diameters of up to eight metres. The wind farm commenced operation in 2025 and is expected to provide green electricity to more than 100,000 households in South Korea.  

Joining forces offshore  

Jeonnam 1 is a joint venture between SK E&S, a leading South Korean energy conglomerate, and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), a global investor in renewable energy infrastructure.

The project combined strong local insight and international offshore wind expertise, which was instrumental in navigating its complexities and ensuring successful delivery. 

Designing for a dynamic seabed

One of the most severe technical challenges of the project was the question of seabed mobility, which means that the entire seabed is exposed to either erosion or sedimentation over time.  

Consequently, scour protection measures around the monopile foundations are essential, but the conditions at the site made it difficult to create a uniform design for scour protection. To address this, we partnered with Deltares, a leading Dutch knowledge institute for water and subsurface, and we used a series of physical model tests to determine the best scour protection solution for the project. 

Innovative installation solutions 

The design also incorporates innovative installation solutions. The embedded part of the foundation can be composed of a monopile (MP) that is driven to the target depth using an impact hammer, or it can be composed of several structural components (monopile (MP), insert pile (IP) and grout annulus) to form a rock socket.  

Following pre-design studies, steel monopiles were used, ensuring the foundation’s adaptability and resilience to the site’s conditions.  
With the project achieving certification in 2022, the Jeonnam 1 Offshore Wind Farm is not only a significant benchmark for South Korea but also serves as a reference for future offshore wind projects by SK E&S and CIP/COP, both in South Korea and internationally.