[DigitalToday reporter Ji-young Lee] Hana Bank said on March 8 that it signed a memorandum of understanding on March 6 with Korea Southern Power to jointly develop offshore wind power projects and accelerate productive finance for a major transition to renewable energy.

The agreement was designed to establish a full-cycle cooperation framework between a private financial institution and a power generator across renewable energy, including offshore wind projects aimed at stabilising the national energy supply and demand, spanning development, construction and operations.

Offshore wind projects require large upfront investment and have long timelines. As a result, an organic link between financing and development is seen as a key factor in success or failure. The agreement links Hana Bank’s infrastructure development-focused investment banking capabilities with Korea Southern Power’s extensive offshore wind development and operating experience, allowing the partners to further raise project completeness.

Hana Bank also expects that, to generate tangible results in eco-friendly and renewable power projects, it can go beyond simple funding and take a leading role throughout the process from feasibility reviews to structuring and arranging finance. The bank expects this productive finance model to respond to the national energy transition policy and contribute to implementing carbon neutrality.

Among offshore wind projects being pursued by Korea Southern Power, the 'Yawol Offshore Wind Power Complex' in Yeonggwang County, South Jeolla Province, and the 'Dadaepo Offshore Wind Power Complex' in Saha district, Busan, for which Hana Bank is serving as financial arranger, are set to be used as power infrastructure for the Honam and Yeongnam regions, respectively. The projects are expected to help strengthen national advanced strategic industries, promote balanced regional development and revitalise local economies.

Hana Bank and Korea Southern Power plan to gradually flesh out their cooperation framework through measures including financial and development cooperation related to offshore wind and renewable energy projects, jointly identifying and reviewing new power generation projects, sharing trends in the infrastructure finance market and preparing response strategies, and supporting efforts to strengthen the financial capabilities of project stakeholders.

Byeong-sik Lee (이병식), executive vice president of Hana Bank’s IB Group, said the bank will build a collaborative model in which the public sector and finance jointly lead projects to successfully 추진 offshore wind power generation, a key power source for carbon neutrality and a major transition to renewable energy. He said the bank will continue to lead efforts to expand the domestic eco-friendly and renewable energy infrastructure landscape by accelerating productive finance.