HD Hyundai Elec commercializes DC distribution facilities for 1 MW bldgs

HD Hyundai Electric Co., the electrical power equipment and energy solution affiliate of South Korean conglomerate HD Hyundai Co. Group, on Friday said it achieved a world first by commercializing direct current (DC) distribution facilities for 1 megawatt-class buildings.

The company held a ceremony to mark the launch of commercial operations of its 1 MW DC power supply system jointly developed with the public utility giant Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) at the HD Hyundai Global R&D Center (GRC) in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, a building where such facilities were installed.

DC distribution is a method of supplying large-capacity DC power of high efficiency converted from that of AC as is to many DC loads. The initial investment cost of DC distribution is higher than that for AC distribution, but the former has higher energy efficiency and easier grid connection.

HD Hyundai Electric said this was the world's first application of DC distribution of 1 MW-class large capacity to a commercial building in a city. The DC load at the GRC, where such facilities are installed, is expected to boost energy efficiency over 10% per year compared to the AC supply method thanks to LED lighting, air conditioning and heating systems, rapid charging stations for electric vehicles (EV) and R&D facilities.

"As demand for DC power and load devices is increasing for things like new and renewable power generation, energy storage systems and EVs, we will cooperate with KEPCO to contribute to advancing DC distribution technology on the domestic market," an HD Hyundai Electric source said.

Also on Friday, HD Hyundai Electric and KEPCO signed a business agreement on entering the DC supply service sector at home and abroad and decided to jointly expand such supply to public and private workplaces.

Write to Ik-Hwan Kim at lovepen@hankyung.com