LS Electric announced plans to establish a joint venture with two subsidiaries of Taiwan's Formosa Plastics Group to secure power infrastructure projects in Taiwan, broadening its existing business of providing electrical equipment in the region.
The Korean manufacturer of power tools and automation systems signed the contract with Nan Ya Plastics and KHI at LS Yongsan Tower in Seoul. LS Electric will possess 50 percent of the venture, Nan Ya will hold 40 percent, and KHI will retain 10 percent.
Nan Ya is a key subsidiary of Formosa that produces petrochemicals, electronic materials, and electronics. According to LS Electric, it has been developing a power solutions enterprise, transitioning from distribution items to extra-high-voltage transmission gear and grid stabilization.
KHI was established last year in partnership with Formosa investment to market technologies created at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, a government-funded research university.
The initiative will initially develop local capability for managing bidding, design, and technical assistance for power projects in Taiwan.
It will merge LS Electric's design and manufacturing expertise with Nan Ya's local production capabilities and its network in engineering, procurement, and construction, the turnkey contracting employed for major infrastructure projects.
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The agreement is based on a memorandum of understanding that the two firms signed in March of last year regarding sustainable power equipment and energy effectiveness in Taiwan. Their collaboration up to this point has focused on providing equipment. According to LS Electric, Taiwan plans to increase renewable energy to 70 percent of its energy mix by 2050 as part of its carbon neutrality initiative, investing in sustainable power infrastructure, energy storage solutions, and smart digital grids.
LS Electric announced it has entered a memorandum of understanding with KT Cloud to collaboratively provide power infrastructure and create technology for artificial intelligence (AI) data centers, as both companies aim to seize a portion of Korea's rapidly expanding AI infrastructure market. The contract was executed at LS Yongsan Tower in Seoul, featuring LS Electric's CEO Chae Dae-seok and KT Cloud's CEO Kim Bong-kyun alongside senior executives from both firms present.
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Through the partnership, the firms will work together from the initial design phase on power solutions for modular data centers—prefabricated facilities where standardized server rooms, power systems, and cooling modules are manufactured at a factory and then assembled on location. This method can greatly reduce construction time in comparison to traditional reinforced-concrete structures and facilitates more adaptable expansion, which is increasingly important as data center operators strive to increase capacity rapidly.
LS Electric will provide essential power equipment — such as ultra-high-voltage transformers, gas-insulated switchgear, and power distribution panels — for KT Cloud's new AI data center initiatives, intending to later extend into uninterruptible power supply units and cooling systems.
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The agreement comes after a series of contracts LS Electric has obtained with prominent North American tech companies constructing hyperscale AI data centers, providing high-voltage transformers and distribution systems.