KETEP initiates research planning for 'Korean Kraken' DER platform
The Korea Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning (KETEP) has officially commenced research planning for the 'Korean Kraken Model,' an integrated platform designed to encompass the future distributed energy ecosystem, with a project announcement targeted for 2028.
Our take
Will Korea's Kraken-style platform open household flexibility to VPPs and private retailers?
Korea's Kraken-style platform will not open household flexibility to private players soon, since it is a public research plan with about 15 billion KRW and a project call targeted for 2028.
KEPCO's grid monopoly and retail tariff regulation have held back private platforms, so research alone does not change the market. The answer depends on whether the demonstration comes with tariff freedom for the wholesale and retail access the project aims to test.
What the source says
- KETEP plans to announce the research project in 2028.
- The Kraken model is a cloud-based, next-generation energy integrated management platform developed by the UK private energy supplier Octopus Energy.
- The platform's core function is real-time AI prediction and management of generation and demand, connecting distributed energy resources for flexible power handling and optimal tariff provision to customers.
- The current research task includes broadly linking Home Energy Management Systems (HEMS), heat pumps, Energy Storage Systems (ESS), and Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) technologies, centered on multi-family housing.
- The project aims to minimize electricity bills by freely navigating wholesale and retail electricity markets and regional tariff markets, ultimately targeting the provision of a Zero-bill service.
- Initially, the ecosystem will be built in conjunction with 'Energy Zero Villages' in Jeju Island, with various expansion plans being reviewed for future links with the Jeonnam region or distributed energy special zones and local governments.
- Kim Ji-hyo Kim Ji-hyo, Smart Demand Management PD at KETEP, stated plans to create a Korean Kraken model by combining heat pumps, ESS, and V2G into appliance manufacturers' modular housing models, and to build it for demonstration and expansion in multi-family housing.
For investors — VPP operators and aggregators should judge this as a research consortium opportunity, not a retail market opening, until tariff rules change.
Optimisers with retail platform experience should check whether foreign firms can join the 2028 call, since eligibility is not published.
Watch: KETEP's official announcement of the 'Korean Kraken' research project in 2028.
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