Preference Analysis on Electric Power Transmission Line Installation: Focusing on the Heterogeneity of S. Korean Residents

Abstract

There are two primary methods of transmitting electricity: building transmission towers on mountainsides and/or in big fields, or installing high voltage transmission cables and distribution lines underground. Evidently, the growing demand for electricity and the difficulty of developing new electricity sources have augmented the need for transmission capabilities, which is best achieved by transmission at very high voltages. The benefit of grounding wires is that transmission towers – which are huge and hateful at sight – become unnecessary, and the surrounding landscape and the city scenery becomes more likable. However, the cost is much higher than for tower installation due to the necessity of having to construct and manage concrete tunnels underground for the wires to run through. Consequently, underground work has primarily been concentrated in large cities with high population density, leaving rural cities, especially those with budget constraints, relatively neglected.

This disparity has yielded arguments that when pursuing governmental projects that can lead to controversies, they must be promoted and implemented in ways that can minimize the imbalance between conflicting stakes and regional conditions.

In this paper, citizens preference for power transmission cable installations in South Korea are analyzed, with a focus on individuals innate and residential heterogeneity. In doing so, discrete choice models are utilized

specifically, the mixed logit model and the latent class model. Attributes such as the number of transmission towers, the electromagnetic field exposure, the number of blackouts, the duration of each blackout, and the additional electricity costs are considered in the choice experiment to identify residents varying preference structures. The factors that represent individuals innate heterogeneity, such as their perceived needs for the project, their attitude with regard to risk, and their city of residence, are also considered to enable further segmentation of consumers.

The results of this paper are expected to contribute in identifying the heterogeneous preferences of subjects for governmental projects, which may eventually help regional governments gain a greater understanding of target consumers specific needs.