School Air Conditioners Running at Full Blast: The Secret Behind a 10 Million Won Profit

"Where does our school's electricity come from?" "It comes from the sun." "Why do we generate power using solar energy?" "Because it is more economical to generate and use our own electricity than to buy it. It also helps reduce environmental pollution."

On July 15, an "ecological transition education" class was in full swing at a fifth-grade classroom at Bokdae Elementary School in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province.

Gathered in small groups, the students designed eco-friendly cities using solar power, following the lesson theme of "Future Cities Utilizing Renewable Energy Suitable for the Region."

The goal of the lesson was based on the fact that solar power is the most suitable renewable energy for Cheongju, a basin-shaped city.

Bokdae Elementary School installed solar power generation facilities in accordance with the Act on the Promotion of the Development, Use and Diffusion of New and Renewable Energy when it relocated to its current site in 2023.

The capacity is a massive 347.8 kW, with a budget of nearly 1.14 billion won invested in the project.

The solar power generation facilities are installed in two locations.

Panels are capturing the intense sunlight in two ways: a 207 kW PV (separate structure) system on the main building's rooftop, and a 140.8 kW BIPV (building-integrated photovoltaic) system on the rooftop of the multipurpose classroom.

The electricity savings are significant.

As of last year, Bokdae Elementary School reportedly covered 42% of its annual electricity consumption through solar power generation.

Furthermore, the school sold 108,209 kWh of surplus electricity generated last year (approximately 27% of its total generation) to the Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), earning 13.863 million won in revenue.

That profit was used to support students in crisis and to operate educational curricula.

On this day, the midday temperature in Cheongju soared well above 30°C (86°F), but the interior of the school building remained cool.

System air conditioners installed throughout the ceilings of the hallways were running at "full blast."

Minister of Education Choi Kyo-jin, who visited Bokdae Elementary School, said, "I have visited many schools, but I have never seen one where even the hallways are this comfortable in the middle of summer." He added, "If more schools engage in solar energy generation projects, the number of students studying in such environments will increase accordingly."

Bokdae Elementary School is one of the exemplary cases of the "Sunlight Connection School Project" promoted by the Ministry of Education.

The Sunlight Connection School Project is a large-scale initiative to install solar power generation facilities in all national and public elementary, middle, and high schools by 2030.

The goal is not only to respond to the increasing trend of electricity consumption and costs in schools but also to establish schools as hubs for energy transition and climate and ecological transition education.

This year alone, pilot projects are being conducted at 400 locations with an average generation capacity of 50 kW, meaning Bokdae Elementary School's capacity is nearly seven times that amount.

After inspecting the solar power facilities, Minister Choi held a meeting with school officials alongside Chungbuk Superintendent of Education Yoon Gun-young.

The meeting was held to hear about the difficulties associated with operating large-scale power generation facilities.

Hong Ran-soo, the principal of Bokdae Elementary School, said, "There is a manual for managing the power facilities, but it is too complex for teachers who are not experts to understand. Fortunately, we had a facility manager with various certifications who made it easier, but that person is now in a situation where they have to transfer to another school." She added, "I hope there will be a separate manual that explains only the core aspects of facility management in an easy way."

She also mentioned, "Since we also use gas energy, I am worried about the possibility of fire accidents."

In response, Cho Jun-young, head of the School Facility Improvement Team at the Ministry of Education, said, "We are discussing measures such as installing fire protection devices and changing the inspection cycle from once every four years to once a year in cooperation with the Korea Electrical Safety Corporation." He added, "We plan to connect the solar power facilities to the Ministry of Education's integrated information network so that any signs of abnormality can be immediately reported to the electrical safety manager."

(Photo: Provided by the Ministry of Education, Yonhap News)

Reported by Yoo Younggyu | Produced by SBS Digital News
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.