Seobu Power, Localization of Advanced Gas Turbine Regeneration Technology

"Annual 35 Billion KRW Revenue Replacement Effect... Expectation for Related Industry Revitalization"

Rotational test of high-temperature parts of the gas turbine. (Photo by Korea Western Power)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] Korea Western Power, Korea Electric Power Research Institute, and KEPCO KPS held a "Report Meeting on the Development Achievements of Domestic Technology for Regeneration of Latest Gas Turbine High-Temperature Components" on the 21st at the Korea Western Power headquarters in Taean-gun, Chungcheongnam-do, the companies announced on the 22nd.

Gas turbine regeneration technology is a technique that restores damage to components occurring at high temperatures of 1000~1600℃ through methods such as precision welding and heat treatment.

Currently, all domestic power generation gas turbines are imported and operated from overseas countries such as the United States, Germany, and Japan. In particular, the latest gas turbines rely 100% on overseas technology for high-temperature component regeneration.

Due to this technological dependence, foreign turbine manufacturers earn significant profits in the high-temperature component maintenance market, which exceeds 100 billion KRW annually.

Accordingly, since his inauguration in 2018, Kim Byung-sook, President of Korea Western Power, has focused on technological independence through the localization of core power generation equipment as a key task.

To this end, barriers to entry for small and medium-sized enterprises were eased, and a dedicated organization was established and operated to create a procurement environment for reliable domestic components.

The gas turbine high-temperature component regeneration technology was born as a result of these efforts.

Korea Western Power developed the regeneration process in cooperation with the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) in the United States and the Korea Electric Power Research Institute.

They successfully completed reliability evaluations including high-precision special welding, heat treatment for high-temperature component regeneration, material analysis, high-speed rotation tests, vibration tests, and stress computational analysis.

In the first half of next year, they plan to complete technological independence in gas turbine regeneration by promoting large-scale demonstration and standardization of quality control procedures.

Choi Yong-beom, Head of Technology and Safety at Korea Western Power, said, "With this localization, we expect to save about 35 billion KRW annually in costs for regeneration technology of the latest gas turbine models that previously depended on imports," adding, "We will improve the ecosystem of gas turbine regeneration technology, which has lagged behind advanced countries, and continue to make sustained efforts in developing high value-added technologies."

Participants attending the 'High-Temperature Component Regeneration Technology Localization Performance Report Meeting' held on the 21st at the headquarters of Korea Western Power in Taean-gun, Chungcheongnam-do, pose for a commemorative photo. The fifth person from the left in the front row is Choi Yong-beom, Head of Technology and Safety Division at Western Power. (Photo by Korea Western Power)