Buk Danjin–Godeok link to be completed by 2020

The Buk Dangjing-Godeok link supplies electricity from the Dangjin power plant to Godeok, Pyeongtaek city and the Seoul Metropolitan area. It is considered crucial in developing South Korea’s transmission network to meet the country’s rapid growth in energy demand.

GE’s Grid Solutions business has been awarded by KAPES a contract in excess of USD $100 million to complete Korea Electric Power Corporation’s second and final phase of the Buk Dangjin-Godeok high- voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission link. This second phase will create an additional 1.5 GW of transmission capacity on the existing 33 km link from the Dangjin plant to Godeok, home to one of the largest semi-conductor plants in the world, as well as to Pyeongtaek city and the south of the Seoul Metropolitan area. Together, these areas account for 40% of South Korea’s energy consumption.

GE and KAPES, a KEPCO-GE joint venture, are scheduled to complete in 2020 the first 1.5 GW phase of the bi-pole link that runs across the Ansanman Bay from Dangjin to Godeok. With HVDC technology, KEPCO, Koreas largest utility, was therefore able to avoid the construction of a 100-km overhead line that an AC scheme would have required. Moreover, this solution provides additional supply into this high-growth region.

With South Korea experiencing a 53% growth in energy demand during the last decade, and continuing to be one of the biggest energy consumers in the world, the Buk Dangjin- Godeok link will be a critical factor in developing South Korea’s transmission network.

“With this project, GE and KEPCO continue to reinforce the value of the KAPES joint venture. The investment that has been made to transfer knowledge and localise GE’s HVDC technology continues to be a win-win partnership,” said Rajendra Iyer, GE’s Grid Solutions’ Integrated Solutions Leader.

The KAPES joint venture is a long-term strategic relationship to co-develop HVDC projects and increase Korean transmission grid capabilities based on GE technology. To date, GE and KAPES have been awarded six grid-critical HVDC projects in Korea, starting in 1994 when GE provided the original 300 MW HVDC bi-pole link for the 101 km, point- to-point submarine electric interconnector linking South Korea’s Jeju Island with the mainland.