Governor Woo: “Timely Expansion of Power Grid... Gangwon to Become Korea’s Premier AI Industry Hub”

Gangwon Province and KEPCO Sign Agreement to Build Power Infrastructure for AI Data Centers
Collaboration on Permits, Local Resident Acceptance, and More; Joint Working Group Launched

Woo Sang-ho, Governor of Gangwon Province, stated on September 9, "We will mobilize all administrative support, from permits to resident communication, to ensure that the power infrastructure is expanded in a timely manner," and added, "We will make Gangwon the leading hub for the AI industry in Korea."

Woo Sangho, Governor of Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province. Provided by Gangwon Province

On this day, Gangwon Province signed a Financial business agreement with Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) to expand power infrastructure for the successful operation of the 'Gangwon AI Data Center' at the small conference room of the provincial government headquarters. Attendees included Governor Woo; Kim Dong-cheol, President of KEPCO; Kim Ho-gon, Head of KEPCO Transmission and Transformation Construction Division; Lee Cheol-hyu, Head of KEPCO Gangwon Headquarters; and Lee Seong-hak, Head of KEPCO Power System Policy Planning Office.

This agreement is aimed at proactively securing a large-scale power supply network, which is a key condition for hosting AI data centers, and at strengthening the cooperation framework between the two institutions in the process of establishing a national key power grid.

Under the agreement, Gangwon Province and KEPCO will work together not only to expand the power infrastructure for AI data centers but also to build a national key power grid for a stable power supply. They also agreed to jointly pursue permits required for grid construction, consultations with relevant organizations, and measures to gain local residents' acceptance, as well as to establish and operate a joint working group for practical discussions.

On the same day, KEPCO released a report on the "AI Data Center Power Supply Conditions and Gangwon Region Power System Status." The company also announced plans to proactively expand the power grid in the Gangwon region to implement the 'local production for local consumption' principle and support balanced regional development by ensuring electricity produced in the region is also consumed locally.

AI data centers require massive amounts of electricity to process ultra-high-speed and large-scale data, making the establishment of a stable power supply network a critical determinant in the project's success. Gangwon Province explained that through this agreement, it has laid the groundwork to jointly address the power supply challenges, which are considered the biggest hurdle in attracting data centers.

The province plans to provide administrative support for KEPCO's power infrastructure development, and, based on this agreement, to accelerate efforts to attract AI data centers in collaboration with major domestic conglomerates and other partners.

Governor Woo stated, "A fast and robust power grid is essential for attracting AI data centers," and went on to say, "By combining Gangwon's administrative capability with KEPCO's technological expertise, we will establish the foundation to lead Korea's future AI industry."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.