Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) intends to accelerate a project to build a power grid network for data centers using superconductivity technologies.
KEPCO said on July 10 the power company struck an MOU on building a data center superconductivity power gird network with LS ELECTRIC and LS Cable & System. The signing ceremony took place at LS Tower in Yongsan, Seoul.
The agreement is designed to cope with a surge in power demand caused by the spread of AI, and the rise in the number of large-capacity data centers.
It takes on significance since a new power network model using superconductivity technologies has been unveiled while the installation of substations in downtown areas is not easy.
KEPCO is in charge of developing superconductivity-based power supply technologies and institutional overhauls; LS ELECTRIC is charged with supplying superconducting fault current limiter (SFCL) and power equipment and components; and LS Cable & System is assigned to design and produce superconductivity cables.
In particular, in 2019, the three companies commercialized the 23KV-class superconductivity cable for the first time. By 2026, they plan to supply superconductivity stations capable of supplying power without the existing 154KV-class facility based on the commercialized technology.
The cooperation will enable the world’s first application of a superconductivity power grid network for data centers. In case of a malfunction, an SFCL will shut down a faulty current to prevent damage to power equipment and the spread of blackout, thus securing the power reliability of data centers.
As the installation of new power grid networks is not easy, KEPCO intends to explore new solutions using superconductivity transmission technologies.
The three companies have secured a track record of establishing the world’s first data center superconductivity power system, and the world’s top level superconductivity transmission technologies are expected to solve energy supply issues in Korea and overseas.
The three companies plan to join forces in overseas market entry.
KEPCO President Kim Dong-cheol said, “The collaboration is a significant project designed to launch fundamental innovation of power grid networks, and it will be an exemplary case of making the prominence of the K-Grid technologies known to the world.”
Govt. Unveils ‘RE100 Industrial Complex’ Plan
The Presidential Office announced a roadmap on RE100 industrial complexes on July 10.
The plan, the first industry policy blueprint of the current government, calls for creating industrial complexes with plants being operated by only renewable energies, such as photovoltaic power and wind power.
It is designed to solve imbalances of power demand concentrated in the Seoul metropolitan area and reinvigorate the regional economies.
Presidential Senior Policy Secretary Kim Yong-beom said the implementation of the RE100 industrial complex plan is in keeping with the President Lee Jae-myung government’s state policy philosophy “energy paradigm shift and balanced regional development.”
KEPCO Secures 5.5TrWon in Financing to Implement Power Projects in Saudia Arabia
Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) has completed project financing for the first phase of the implementation of power projects in Saudia Arabia.
KEPCO has secured a 5.5 trillion won fund by striking project financing contracts for Saudi Arabia’s Al Sadawi photovoltaic project and the Rumah-1 and Al Nairyah-1 independent power plant projects.
The project financing loans were based on expected project profitability and the credit of the corporate entities related to the projects, without KEPCO’s guarantee.
Despite international uncertainties and international market fluctuations, KEPCO has succeeded in project financing funding with competitive conditions form syndicated lenders, including the Export-Import Bank of Korea and other international commercial banks.
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