Valley of Energy

(Starting fourth from left) KEPCO KPS President Choi Yeu-geun, KEPCO KDN CEO Lim Soo-kyoung, KEPCO CEO Cho Hwan-eik, and LSIS chairman Koo Ja-kyun pose for a photo with others after signing an MOU to invest in the Energy Valley in Naju, South Korea.
(Starting fourth from left) KEPCO KPS President Choi Yeu-geun, KEPCO KDN CEO Lim Soo-kyoung, KEPCO CEO Cho Hwan-eik, and LSIS chairman Koo Ja-kyun pose for a photo with others after signing an MOU to invest in the Energy Valley in Naju, South Korea.

 

The state-run Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) announced on Sept. 8 that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with 25 leading energy firms including LSIS, ABB Korea, and Woojin Electric Machinery to invest in the “Energy Valley” in Naju, South Jeolla Province.

Under the agreement, they will invest a total of 130.9 billion won (US$109.31 million) in the valley and employ 1,037 people. Investing 60 billion won (US$50.1 million) in the urban high-tech industrial complex in Gwangju, South Jeolla Province, Korean conglomerate LSIS will establish test and demonstration centers for a mass Energy Storage System (ESS) and Power Conversion System (PCS) in a first stage, and expand the investment to test and demonstration centers for high-voltage direct current (HVDC) and direct current (DC) devices for a second stage. Also, relevant partner companies are expected to move their offices together.

In particular, a foreign energy firm will make the first investment in the Energy Valley. ABB Korea, the global leader in the electricity grid and car sectors, will collaborate on next-generation industries such as HVDC, flexible AC transmission systems, battery energy storage systems, and cyber security. Also, the company will come up with mutual cooperation plans with small and mid-size companies in the Energy Valley so that it can help smaller firms, start-ups, and research firms grow as hidden champions. Among those who have signed up for investments, 19 firms are in the new industrial energy and power information and communications technology (ICT) sectors, accounting for 76 percent of the total.

With the attraction of 25 companies this time, KEPCO have attracted 57 firms to the Energy Valley this year, and achieved 57 percent of the target of 100 firms by 2016. Sixteen firms out of the 32 that have signed MOUs in the first half of this year have completed contracts for sites and moved in already, so the investments are going smoothly.

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