LS Cable & System to join UK's $27.5b power grid project

LS Cable & System Vice Chairman Lee Sang-don (far right) and officials from National Grid pose for a photo during the HVDC framework agreement. (LS Cable & System)

LS Cable & System said Friday that it has signed a framework agreement with National Grid, the UK’s power transmission network operator, to supply high-voltage direct current cables.

National Grid oversees the UK’s entire power transmission network and is developing a large-scale transmission infrastructure across mainland Britain and the North Sea region. Over the next eight years, the company plans to carry out 15 cable supply and installation projects, with a total budget of approximately 21.3 billion pounds ($27.5 billion).

The framework agreement was signed before individual project contracts to preselect key suppliers and establish a long-term cooperative framework. Six companies from Europe, Japan and other regions, including Korea's LS Cable & System, were selected under this agreement. Specific project contracts will be signed separately at a later stage.

Through this agreement, LS Cable & System will participate in individual projects, supplying submarine and underground HVDC cables and carrying out installation and connection work.

“Only six companies worldwide, including LS Cable & System, have experience in supplying HVDC cables, and LS Cable & System is the sole company in Korea with this capability," a company official said. "With supply falling short of demand, companies worldwide are proactively securing supply quantities in advance."

Since developing Korea’s first HVDC cable technology in 2007, LS Cable & System has successfully executed all of the country’s HVDC projects. The company has also secured over 3 trillion won in HVDC contracts from overseas markets, including the UK and Germany.

Meanwhile, LS Cable & System plans to break ground on a submarine cable factory in Virginia in April. The company is also actively exploring expansion into the UK, Vietnam, and other global markets in collaboration with LS Eco Energy and LS Marine Solutions.