▲ Hyundai E&C takes its first step as a developer by participating in a large-scale solar PV project in the US

▲ Fully focused on next-generation energy transition by diversifying global energy businesses such as solar, hydrogen, and nuclear power

Hyundai E&C is broadening its entry into the U.S. energy market by taking part in a solar-power project.

On the 9th (local time), Hyundai E&C as part of “Team Korea”, which includes private companies, public enterprises, and policy funds such as Korea Midland Power, Korea Overseas Infrastructure and Urban Development Corporation (KIND), EIP Asset Management, and the PIS Fund, completed financing for a KRW 750 billion solar PV project in Texas, USA, and has commenced full-scale construction.

Codenamed “LUCY,” the project will build and operate a 350 MWac (455 MWdc) solar power plant in Concho County, northwest of Austin, Texas. Spanning 11,735,537 m², roughly four times the size of Yeouido, or about 1,653 soccer fields, it will involve an investment of KRW 750 billion and is expected to generate and sell around 926 GWh of electricity annually for 35 years after completion. This is enough to power roughly 260,000 four-person households consuming an average of 300 kWh per month.

Hyundai E&C has been involved since the development stage, providing equity investment, conducting technical reviews, and supplying solar modules. Construction will be conducted by the local contractor Primoris, while Korea Midland Power will operate the plant.

Following the signing of the project-fund investment and project-rights acquisition agreements in August 2023, the project secured all required permits, including grid-connection due diligence and interconnection agreements in May 2024 and subsequently commenced construction.

Despite recent U.S. policy changes that have raised entry barriers for Korean firms in the renewable energy market, this project which is scheduled for completion in June 2027 falls outside the scope of the new regulations.

The electricity produced will be sold to numerous global companies, including Starbucks and Workday, via a Virtual Power Purchase Agreement (VPPA)¹⁾. By establishing a stable framework for renewable energy generation and supply, the project is expected to support the worldwide achievement of RE100 targets.

An official from Hyundai E&C commented, “With global energy demand surging, energy security and supply stability have become top global priorities. Hyundai E&C is actively promoting not only this solar PV project but also large-scale nuclear power plants and small modular reactor (SMR) projects, while concentrating efforts on key areas across the entire energy sector such as hydrogen, offshore wind power, and power transmission and transformation, adding that, “We will continue to accelerate technological development in the energy field while securing future growth engines by investing in and developing projects in advanced markets, taking the lead in the transition to next-generation energy.”

1) A Virtual Power Purchase Agreement is an electricity-supply contract between a power purchaser and a renewable-energy generator, fulfilled via financial settlement rather than physical delivery.