The program has saved 1,025 GWh since its launch, cutting greenhouse gas emissions by about 430,000 metric tons

[Provided by Korea Electric Power Corporation]
[Provided by Korea Electric Power Corporation]

Korea Electric Power Corporation said Monday that enrollment in its residential energy cashback program — which offers electricity bill discounts to customers who reduce their power consumption — has surpassed 2 million households.

Introduced in 2022, the energy cashback program discounts electricity bills for customers who cut their monthly power usage by a set amount compared with their average consumption during the same month over the previous two years.

According to Korea Electric Power, the program has saved a cumulative 1,025 GWh of electricity through the first half of this year — roughly equivalent to the annual residential power consumption of all households on Jeju Island. The initiative has also reduced greenhouse gas emissions by about 430,000 metric tons.

The utility temporarily raised its cashback payout rate this year to enhance benefits, and in September and October introduced a "smart appliance cashback" service designed to encourage customers to shift electricity use to daytime hours when renewable energy generation is abundant.

Korea Electric Power said the smart appliance cashback is significant because it nudges customers not only to reduce overall consumption but also to adjust when during the day they use electricity.

To mark the 2-million-household milestone, the company will award a prize to the 2 millionth enrollee and will hold a public congratulatory comment event and a children's energy-saving drawing and poster contest through Dec. 6.

Both the event and the contest are open for participation through the submission board on "Seulgiroun Jeongi Saenghwal," an energy-saving platform whose name translates roughly as "a smart electricity lifestyle."

"Reaching 2 million enrolled households in the energy cashback program is a meaningful achievement made possible by the public's attention to and participation in energy conservation," a Korea Electric Power official said. "We will continue to develop a variety of energy-saving measures that people can practice in their daily lives and improve the program so that customers can feel the benefits."


oskymoon@heraldcorp.com