LSIS has come close to the localization of a high voltage, direct current (HVDC) electric power transmission system, which is likely to emerge as one of the core smart grid technologies.

The company has built an HVDC electric power transmission system production plant in the Hwajeon Industrial Complex in Busan and has succeeded in developing conversion transformers and a thyristor valve, HVDC’s core components. In this way, LSIS strives to advance to the actualization of an HVDC system using Korea’s own technology. 

The HVDC system is considered to be highly efficient for the bulk transmission of electrical power and to enhance safety. 

LSIS CEO Koo Ja-kyun recognizes the HVDC system technology as its breadwinner of the future and pins high hopes on the system being an axis of the smart grid era down the road. 

Alstom, Siemens, ABB, and other European companies have dominated the global HVDC electric transmission system market since the 1990s. Korean companies, including LSIS, have made inroads into the market since 2008.

Korea Electric Power Corp. has awarded the project to build the HVDC system connecting Jeju and Haenam, Jeollanam-do, to Alstom of France. 

LSIS has accomplished the feat of developing the homegrown HVDC system technology, which is expected to replace the bulk of HVDC imports. 

The thyristor valve, considered the heart of the HVDC system, is an essential core device for freely transforming direct and alternative currents.

Lee Sang-hoon, an LSIS researcher, said the thyristor valve has to be fitted with a high-voltage insulation function as it should be connected with direct currents ranging from tens to hundreds of kV. 

The valve at power conversion stations, which needs to be warranted for a lifespan of more than 30 years, is tested for safety at the lab, he said. 

An LSIS official said LSIS plans to make inroads into the global HVDC market by developing technologies of between 80kV and 500kV. The company aims at chalking up 1.7 trillion won in sales in the HVDC business by 2019. 

The global HVDC market is forecast to surge by the 2020s as much as the current value. HVDCs enjoy popularity in China, India, and South American countries where long-distance electric power transmission is needed and European countries where equipment for converting direct and alternative currents are in service. 

LSIS is running ahead in the commercialization of the HVDC system technologies by putting its transformers on the power conversion stations at the HVDC experimentation center of the Jeju Smart Grid Test-bed, he said.  

LSIS Wins Best Company Award for 5th Consecutive Year 

LSIS captured the 2012 Korea’s Best Company Award in the electric/electric cable sector for five consecutive years awarded by the Korea CEO Association (KCEOA).

Korea’s Best Company Awards have been hosted by the KCEOA for 11 years and contribute to firms’ growth as the world’s top-class companies by evaluating the competitiveness of Korean companies listed on the stock market, based on objective indicators.

LSIS participated in the awards ceremony held in the Renaissance Hotel Seoul’s Diamond Ballroom on June 20. As a result of evaluations on corporate size, growth, profitability, and stability, LSIS was selected as the leading company in the electric/electric cable sector.