Europe’s energy transition is entering a phase in which generating more renewable electricity is no longer enough. The continent also needs a much larger and more sophisticated grid to move that electricity across long distances, connect national power systems and supply a new generation of power-hungry AI data centers.

That shift is creating an opportunity for South Korean power infrastructure companies.

The European Commission estimates that about €584 billion of investment in electricity grids will be needed by 2030 to support the energy transition. At the same time, roughly 40% of Europe’s distribution grids are more than 40 years old, adding replacement and modernization needs to an already expanding investment cycle.

LS ELECTRIC and LS Cable & System are positioning themselves for that opportunity.

The two companies will jointly participate in CIGRE 2026 in Paris from Aug. 23 to 28, presenting technologies ranging from high-voltage direct current, or HVDC, systems to submarine cables and DC distribution infrastructure for AI data centers.

But the more important story is not the exhibition itself.

It is how LS is assembling technologies across different parts of the electricity value chain as Europe rebuilds the infrastructure connecting power generation to end users.

Why Europe’s Renewable Boom Needs HVDC

One of the biggest challenges created by renewable energy is geography.

Large renewable resources are often located far from the cities and industrial centers that consume electricity. Offshore wind makes the challenge particularly clear: electricity generated at sea must be transmitted efficiently over long distances before entering terrestrial power networks.

Cross-border electricity trading adds another layer.

As European countries increase interconnection capacity to improve energy security and balance intermittent renewable generation, long-distance transmission technologies are becoming increasingly important.

HVDC is well suited to that environment because it can transmit large amounts of electricity efficiently over long distances.

LS ELECTRIC plans to showcase converter transformers for HVDC systems as well as next-generation voltage-source converter HVDC technology at CIGRE 2026. The company is also presenting STATCOM systems designed to help stabilize increasingly complex power grids.

LS Cable & System addresses another part of the same infrastructure.

Its HVDC submarine and underground cable systems connect generation sites, transmission networks and major demand centers. In simplified terms, LS ELECTRIC provides technologies that convert and control electricity, while LS Cable & System provides the physical infrastructure that carries it over long distances.

That combination becomes more relevant as Europe expands offshore wind farms and cross-border transmission links.

AI Adds a New Problem to the Grid

Renewable energy is not the only force reshaping electricity infrastructure.

AI is emerging as another major source of demand.

Large AI data centers require enormous amounts of electricity, but total consumption is only part of the challenge. Operators also need highly reliable power systems capable of supporting dense computing infrastructure and rapidly changing loads.

As a result, competition over AI infrastructure is increasingly becoming a competition over electricity infrastructure.

LS ELECTRIC sees DC distribution as one potential answer.

Most conventional grids distribute electricity using alternating current, while much of the computing equipment inside a data center ultimately operates on direct current. Repeated conversions between AC and DC create power losses along the way.

A greater use of DC distribution could reduce those conversion stages and improve overall energy efficiency.

LS ELECTRIC has already built what it describes as the world’s first factory operating on 100% DC distribution at its Cheonan facility in South Korea. The company is using that experience to develop technologies such as solid-state transformers and solid-state circuit breakers for broader applications, including AI data centers.

LS Materials, an LS Cable & System subsidiary, is also targeting the sector with ultracapacitors designed to respond rapidly to sudden high-power demand and help stabilize data center power systems.

From Selling Equipment to Building a Grid Portfolio

This points to a broader shift in LS’s strategy.

The opportunity is no longer limited to selling an individual transformer, circuit breaker or cable.

Electricity generated by offshore wind farms may need to be converted for HVDC transmission, transported through submarine and underground cables, stabilized as it enters interconnected grids and ultimately distributed efficiently to industrial facilities or AI data centers.

LS is positioning multiple businesses across that chain.

That matters because electricity networks themselves are becoming a bottleneck for economic growth.

For much of the past two decades, investment attention centered on generating more renewable power. Now, electrification, EVs, renewable energy and AI data centers are increasing electricity demand at the same time, exposing the limitations of aging transmission and distribution infrastructure.

A country can have enough generating capacity and still struggle to connect a new factory or data center if the grid cannot deliver the required power.

Europe Could Be the Next Test for LS

LS ELECTRIC and LS Cable & System have already been expanding their power infrastructure businesses overseas, with North America emerging as an important growth market.

Europe represents a different but potentially substantial opportunity.

Aging infrastructure must be replaced while offshore wind, cross-border interconnectors, electrification and data center investment require new capacity. These forces could turn Europe’s grid upgrade into a multi-year infrastructure cycle rather than a temporary equipment boom.

That is what makes CIGRE 2026 strategically relevant for LS.

The technologies on display — HVDC converter equipment, submarine cables, grid stabilization systems and DC distribution — may appear to belong to separate markets. In practice, they are increasingly becoming parts of the same infrastructure problem.

The first phase of the AI boom was dominated by GPUs and HBM. The next phase is exposing the physical infrastructure required to keep those chips running: electricity generation, transmission, distribution and cooling.

For LS, Europe’s projected €584 billion grid investment requirement therefore represents more than a market for electrical equipment.

It is a test of whether the group can evolve from supplying individual power products into competing across the architecture of the grid itself.

Jung So-yeon More by this reporter