Willingness to participate in community-based renewable energy projects: A contingent valuation study in South Korea

Several countries have recently adopted models of community-based renewable energy projects, mainly in order to improve the local community's acceptance of renewable energy facilities. This study analyzes the South Korea's general public and local residents’ acceptance of community-based renewable energy projects using the contingent valuation method. Respondents’ willingness to participate in a renewable energy project are measured by the expected return on investment in the project. Analysis results indicate that the average annual rate of return expected by the general public is 3.1% for solar photovoltaic power plants, 5.4% for wind power, and 7.1% for biomass power plants. For local residents, the average annual rate of return expected by local residents is 12.3% for solar photovoltaic power plants, 9.1% for wind power, and 10.8% for biomass power plants. These results show that acceptance is markedly lower among local residents in comparison with the general public. However, simulation results prove that it is possible to provide local residents with returns beyond their expectation if the entirety of the additional incentives under the current system are given to them. Relevant policy implications and recommendations are provided based on the analysis results.