Developers and energy‑industry players are welcoming South Korea’s move to overhaul its renewable‑energy market, saying the shift toward centralised auctions will unlock large‑scale offshore wind development.

“Developers have been encouraged [to participate in the market],” Niels Steenberg, Executive General Manager for offshore wind in APAC at Siemens Gamesa told the 18th Asia Offshore Wind Day in Busan this week.

He added that the recent auction rounds have been seeing oversubscription as they are becoming increasingly competitive.

The South Korean government confirmed that the country’s long‑running Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) will be abolished at the end of 2026, clearing the way for a unified auction‑based contract market built around long‑term fixed‑price PPAs with KEPCO.

Officials say the new system will provide the stable revenue offshore wind developers have lacked for more than a decade, replacing volatile REC‑based income with predictable, bankable contracts.

“We are supportive of the scheme,” Jens Orfelt, an EVP and the regional president for offshore development in APAC for German renewables developer RWE, told NPM.

The Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment launched its first centralised auction earlier this year, a roughly 1 GW solar tender, marking the beginning of Korea’s transition to technology‑specific competitive bidding.

The new framework is widely seen as aligning Korea with international best practice and reducing commercial risk for foreign investors.

The government’s agenda focuses mainly on helping Korean companies, a local industry analyst told NPM on Friday. He said, however, that the shift brings about new opportunities for non-Korean developers.

Global players such as Ørsted, Equinor, Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), and RWE have long scouted Korean offshore wind zones but struggled to advance projects under the RPS system.

The new auction structure, combined with clearer permitting pathways and government‑designated offshore wind areas, is expected to accelerate foreign participation.

Some international developers have already secured early positions: CIP has been progressing multiple offshore wind sites in Jeonnam and Ulsan; Ørsted has advanced development rights in Incheon’s offshore wind zone; Equinor continues to position itself for floating wind opportunities off Ulsan.

Industry watchers say the new contract market could finally allow these projects to move into financing and construction phases after years of delay.

Although RPS remains in place until the end of this year, Korea has operated fixed‑price tenders in parallel since 2017, initially for solar and later expanded as part of the transition plan.

These tenders provided early revenue stability but were limited in scale and did not replace REC‑based income for most projects.

The 2026 centralised auction was the first to test the full architecture of the upcoming contract market, including price caps, carbon‑intensity scoring, and KEPCO‑backed PPAs.

Chinese players may also benefit from the shift.

Both international players and local industru sources teold New Project Media that the policy change may open the door for Chinese‑linked companies to participate more actively, despite the government’s reluctance to allow direct foreign dominance in strategic sectors.

According to one market watcher, who requested anonymity, firms such as Unison, which has financial backing from Chinese institutions, could expand their role through partnerships with Korean developers.

“The government (is not welcoming) Chinese companies,” with open arms, a local energy adviser told NPM, explaining that local politics and geopolitics have largely been driving the developments in the energy industry.

Analysts say the new auction system may allow Chinese technology and capital to enter the market more discreetly through joint ventures or supply‑chain partnerships, potentially speeding up project timelines while still fitting within the government’s agenda to strengthen domestic companies.