LS Cable & System has become the first Korean company to begin construction of a large-scale factory in the United States since the beginning of President Donald Trump’s second term, and is targeting the global market despite the strengthened protectionism.
LS Cable & System announced on April 29 that its subsidiary, LS GreenLink, has begun construction of the largest submarine cable manufacturing plant in the U.S. in Chesapeake, Virginia.
This project, with a total investment of $681 million (1 trillion won), is attracting attention as the first large-scale investment by a Korean company in the U.S. since the beginning of Trump’s second term.
This investment is part of LS Cable & System’s plan to proactively respond to the U.S. supply chain self-reliance strategy and to establish a foundation for leading the global energy infrastructure transition.
In particular, given the extremely limited submarine cable production infrastructure in the United States, this investment has strategic significance in terms of expanding local procurement and improving supply chain stability.
The factory will be built on a 396,700 square meter site in the Elizabeth River basin with a total floor area of approximately 70,000 square meters.
The plant is scheduled to be completed in the third quarter of 2027 and begin mass production in the first quarter of 2028, and the company also plans to expand its facilities in line with future global demand.
The planned production facilities include a 201-meter-tall VCV tower and dedicated port facilities.
These will provide the plant with world-class, one-stop infrastructure capable of everything from the production of HVDC (high voltage direct current) submarine cables to their transportation and supply.
Notably, the VCV Tower will be the tallest structure in Virginia and the tallest industrial facility on the East Coast between Philadelphia and Charlotte.
Construction of the plant is expected to create more than 330 quality jobs in the local community.
“The construction of the LS GreenLink plant will be a turning point for LS Cable & System on its path to becoming a global energy infrastructure company,” said Koo Bon-kyu, CEO of LS Cable & System.
“With our world-class manufacturing infrastructure, we will respond quickly and efficiently to the rapidly growing global demand for submarine cables.”
“We have already secured export orders for Europe for the next 18 months,” said Kim Ki-soo, CEO of LS GreenLink, adding, “The US AI data center power demand in 2024 will reach 32 GW, half of South Korea’s total annual power demand (62 GW), and will more than triple to 120 GW by 2030, driving up cable demand accordingly.”
Chesapeake Mayor Rick West presents to LS Cable & System President Koo Bon-kyu the traffic sign named :1 LS Way” as a gift at a groundbreaking ceremony for the submarine cable manufacturing plant.(Photos: LS Cable & System)
“Groundbreaking on GreenLink is a symbolic demonstration of Virginia’s innovation and manufacturing prowess,” said Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin. “This plant will create hundreds of jobs and provide a model for sustainable economic growth.”
Chesapeake Mayor Rick West said, “This investment is the largest single private investment in Chesapeake City history, and will serve as an opportunity for the city to become a key hub in the global energy supply chain.”
LS C&S wins 200 billion won ultra-high voltage cable project in Singapore
LS Cable & System announced on April 10 that it had won a project for SP PowerAssets Limited to supply ultra-high voltage power cables worth approximately 200 billion won.
The project is part of a large-scale energy infrastructure construction project that will transmit solar power generated in Indonesia to Singapore.
LS Cable & System will supply 230 kV ultra-high voltage cables for the underground transmission section that connects to the substation, and will carry out the project in a turnkey manner, including the manufacturing and laying of cables.
The Singapore government is pursuing a policy to convert 6 GW, equivalent to 25 percent of total electricity, to renewable energy by 2035.
In particular, as the government has adopted a method of constructing its power grid using only underground cables, without building transmission towers, demand for high value-added underground cables is increasing rapidly.
“Winning this project is a result of the company’s technological prowess and reliability being recognized in the highly competitive global market,” said an official of LS Cable & System.
“The supply of underground cables has increased the possibility of our business expanding to the submarine cable sector in the future.”
LS Cable & System is currently in negotiations regarding additional underground cable sections.
The contract amount will be approximately 150 billion won, and when the final contract is signed, the total order amount will increase to approximately 350 billion won.
LS Cable & System, together with LS Eco Energy, has maintained the top market share in Singapore’s ultra-high voltage cable market for over 10 years.
LS Eco Energy is currently reviewing a plan to transmit electricity generated from Vietnam’s offshore wind power to Singapore via submarine cables in cooperation with Vietnam’s state-owned PetroVietnam Group.
LS Cable & System strengthens global competitiveness
LS Cable & System announced on April 7 that it has built a 3,000kW solar power generation system at its submarine cable plant in Donghae-si, Gangwon-do, and has begun operations.
The company decided to introduce this system to secure global competitiveness by reducing electricity costs and strengthening its eco-friendly production base.
The solar system can generate about 3,600MWh of electricity per year, equivalent to the amount of electricity used by about 1,200 general households.
It is projected to save up to 7 billion won in electricity costs over 20years.
As global clients have recently been demanding that products be produced using renewable energy as a condition for bidding, this investment is also significant in terms of market response.
In fact, companies such as Ørsted, Europe’s largest renewable energy company, and TenneT, a German transmission grid operator, are actively pursuing the decarbonization of their supply chains.
In addition to building this solar system, LS Cable & System is also upgrading its ESG management system.
Last December, the company became the first Korean cable manufacturer to receive official approval for its net-zero implementation goal from the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi).
It has also established a mid- to long-term reduction roadmap with the goal of achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
“It is significant that the Donghae plant achieved its goal of using 100% renewable energy through the introduction of this solar power system,” said an official of LS Cable & System.
“We will expand the use of renewable energy to our domestic and overseas workplaces in the future and build a low-carbon supply chain that meets RE100 and SBTi standards and customer demands.”
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