LS ELECTRIC is taking decisive steps towards the localisation of ‘Voltage-Source HVDC (High Voltage Direct Current)’, a key technology for the next-generation national power grid.
LS ELECTRIC recently announced at the Grand Hyatt Seoul in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, that it had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with GE Vernova, a global energy solutions company, for localising converter equipment for HVDC.
The signing ceremony was attended by LS ELECTRIC Chairman Koo Ja-Kyun, CEO Kim Jong-woo, GE Vernova’s President of Electrification, Philippe Piron, Vice President of Grid Integration Systems Johan Bindele, the U.S. Embassy in Korea’s Economic Counsellor Alexei Kral, and about 50 other officials.
The two companies agreed at this event to actively cooperate in technology to localise the converter valve, a core facility of gigawatt-level voltage-source HVDC, utilising LS ELECTRIC’s HVDC production infrastructure.
Having already achieved localisation of HVDC conversion transformers (CTR), LS ELECTRIC plans to embed GE Vernova’s advanced technology in converter valves to complete the localisation of voltage-source conversion facilities.
HVDC technology converts AC power produced at power plants into high-voltage DC for transmission and then back into AC near the consumer. Compared to traditional AC transmission, it has lower transmission losses, is ideal for underground and submarine cables, and offers excellent economic and stable advantages for large-scale power transmission.
Particularly, voltage-source HVDC is favourable for system stabilisation compared to current-source HVDC and is suitable for real-time, bidirectional power flow control, making it advantageous for integrating renewable energy. This technology is critical for realising the ‘West Coast Energy Superhighway’ to connect marine and renewable energy produced in the Honam region to the metropolitan area by 2030.