Power Growth
From May 29 to 30, LS Group Chairman Koo Ja-Yol visited Jeju Island to inspect the site to commercialize superconductivity and high voltage direct current (HVDC) electric power transmission system technologies, which are new growth engines.
Along with LS Group Vice Chairman Lee Kwang-woo, Chairman Koo visited the Superconducting Power System Center of LS Cable and System (LS C&S) and the HVDC Smart Center of LSIS in Jeju Island and checked the progress of developing these new technologies.
The LS Group said on May 31, “Chairman Koo’s visit to Jeju centers is to strengthen new technology and new business further, and to promote innovation of industrial sites since its foundation.”
Through the advanced research centers of LS C&S and LSIS, the group has focused on the localization of superconductivity and HVDC technologies, which are the core technologies of a next-gen electrical grid.
Koo carefully looked around superconductivity cable tramways and HVDC conversion facilities in the site. He said, “Jeju Island is where energy efficiency technologies pursed by LS Group as a new business are concentrated and the possibility of commercialization of next-generation technologies are finally verified. The results in Jeju Island will play a vital role in the future of LS Group.”
Chairman Koo visited the company’s plant in Wuxi, China, with his non-executive directors on May 14. Starting the superconductivity cable development in 2001, LS C&S succeeded in developing alternating current (AC) superconducting cables in 2004 for the fourth time in the world and 80kV superconducting direct (DC) cables in 2013 for the first time in the world. Accordingly, the group is the only company in the world that has secured both DC and AC technologies.
After starting research to develop technology for HVDC localization in cooperation with Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) in 2009, LSIS has completed its HVDC plant in Busan in 2011. As the company was selected as the preferred bidder to transfer technologies of the joint venture KEPCO Alstom Power Electronics Systems (KAPES) in 2013, it is localizing core HVDC core technologies.