[Energy-topia] President Lee, Start by Visiting the Hanam Substation

Energy and AI Expressways as National Policy Agendas
Delays in Construction Due to Resident Acceptance Issues
Hanam Substation Becomes the First Policy Test Case

Panoramic view of Hanam Dongseoul Substation. Korea Electric Power Corporation

On August 13, the Presidential National Policy Planning Committee announced two types of expressways as part of its national policy agenda. One is the Energy Expressway, and the other is the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Expressway. Although they may seem unrelated, the two are actually interconnected.

The Energy Expressway is a pledge that President Lee Jaemyung has advocated since his candidacy. The Policy Planning Committee introduced the Energy Expressway as a policy that can achieve both economic growth and carbon neutrality. The Energy Expressway involves constructing a high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission network under the sea to efficiently deliver electricity generated in Honam, a region rich in renewable energy resources, to areas with high demand.

High-voltage direct current transmission is a method that converts alternating current produced at power plants into direct current for transmission. On the receiving end, a device is needed to convert the direct current back into alternating current. Direct current is more advantageous for long-distance transmission compared to alternating current. The Lee administration aims to first build the Energy Expressway along the west coast in the 2030s, then expand it to the southern and eastern coasts, ultimately completing a U-shaped Korean Peninsula Energy Expressway in the 2040s.

The idea of the Energy Expressway emerged because building an overland power grid is becoming increasingly difficult. In South Korea, negative perceptions among residents about transmission towers have led to delays in grid construction across the country. In many cases, projects have stalled due to compensation disputes. According to Korea Electric Power Corporation, completion dates for 26 out of 31 major transmission lines have been postponed due to resident opposition and delays in obtaining permits.

Constructing a transmission network is also absolutely necessary for the expansion of renewable energy. In the Honam region, output restrictions frequently occur due to insufficient grid capacity, resulting in electricity being generated but not delivered. As of September last year, the five power generation companies reported 958 cases of renewable energy output control between 2023 and 2024, with 626 cases, or 65.3%, involving solar power.

According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the installed renewable energy capacity in the Honam region reached approximately 11 gigawatts (GW) as of 2023. By 2031, an additional 32 GW of solar power facilities are expected to be installed in Honam. Furthermore, by 2035, Jeonnam will establish the world's largest offshore wind power complex, with a capacity of 8.2 GW across 26 sites. To deliver electricity generated in these areas to demand centers such as the Seoul metropolitan area, a large-scale expansion of the transmission network is essential.

The Energy Expressway is also a prerequisite for the AI Expressway. The AI Expressway refers to data centers, which are core infrastructure for rapidly processing and transferring data. AI data centers are known to consume five to ten times more electricity than conventional data centers. To achieve the Lee administration's key pledge of making South Korea one of the world's top three AI powerhouses, expanding the transmission network on a large scale is necessary.

Even if the Energy Expressway passes under the sea, electricity must still pass through land to reach its final destinations. This brings the issue of resident acceptance back to the forefront. A prime example is the Hanam Dongseoul Substation indoor expansion project. Although consensus has been reached with residents of 79 villages along the East Coast?Seoul metropolitan HVDC transmission line, the project has stalled completely due to opposition from residents in Hanam, the final hurdle.

No matter how ambitious a plan may be, without the ability to execute, it remains an empty promise. The expansion of the Hanam Dongseoul Substation could serve as the first test to determine whether the two expressway policies emphasized by President Lee will function effectively. It is recommended that President Lee personally visit the Hanam Substation, listen to voices on the ground, and seek solutions.