KENTECH Launches Next-Generation Power Grid Innovation with "K-Grid Talent and Startup Valley"

Korea Energy Engineering University held a corporate meeting for the creation of the "K-Grid Talent and Startup Valley." Photo by Korea Energy Engineering University

Korea Energy Engineering University (KENTECH) announced on October 28 that it held a corporate meeting for the creation of the "K-Grid Talent and Startup Valley," where participants discussed next-generation power grid innovation, talent development, and strategies for building a startup ecosystem.

More than 30 participants attended the meeting, including Kim Yongbeom, Chief Policy Officer at the Presidential Office, Ha Jeongwoo, Chief of AI Future Planning, Lee Wonjoo, Director General of Energy Transition Policy at the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment, as well as representatives from startups, major corporations, and university researchers. They discussed directions for public-private cooperation in the next-generation power grid industry.

Korea Energy Engineering University is taking the lead in cultivating key talent needed for the development of a next-generation Korean power grid and is actively promoting the "K-Grid Talent and Startup Valley" project to foster energy startups. The attendees reviewed strategies to strengthen industry-academia-research collaboration aimed at creating a "Korean Silicon Valley" in the energy sector and agreed on the necessity of establishing a one-stop support system that integrates talent development, technology-based startups, and research collaboration.

Agenda items included the design of joint programs for technology demonstration in the next-generation power grid sector and support for the commercialization of startup companies, as well as plans to build testbeds. Based on these discussions, Korea Energy Engineering University plans to establish and expand a Korean-style Research Triangle Park (RTP) in collaboration with GIST and Chonnam National University, using an "open campus" operational model. The university also aims to build an open global innovation platform that allows for free collaboration with companies and research institutions.

Participating companies introduced a variety of startup ideas, including AI-based renewable energy generation forecasting, virtual power plant (VPP) technology, power demand management, and long-duration energy storage systems (ESS), sharing trends in technology and commercialization directions from the industry. They also reached a consensus on the urgent need for institutional support, such as linking startups with investors and easing regulations, and requested that Korea Energy Engineering University play a central role as a demonstration testbed.

Park Jin-ho, Acting President, stated, "Korea Energy Engineering University is at the core of the 'K-Grid Talent and Startup Valley,' nurturing talent to lead next-generation power grid innovation and promoting technology-based startups. Through collaboration among industry, academia, and research, we will create a world-class energy innovation model."