5G Technology to Resolve Power Plant Communication Failures 'Within Seconds'

SK Telecom-HanSuwon, Second-Level Response
Private 5G Emergency Communication Solution Collaboration

SK Telecom and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power announced on the 13th that they have agreed to cooperate for the commercialization after demonstrating the 'Private 5G-based Emergency Communication Solution' at the Yangyang Pumped Storage Power Plant. From left in the photo: Seosung Yong, SKT Manager; Jeong Chang Kwon, Head of SKT Infra Biz.; Shin Yong Sik, Head of SKT IoT CO; Jeon Hye Soo, Head of Digital Innovation Promotion Team at KHNP; Bae Bong Won, Director of Yangyang Pumped Storage Power Plant at KHNP; Kim Sung Sul, Head of Information and Communication Office at KHNP; Chae Jong Il, Deputy Head of Information and Communication Office at KHNP. Photo by SK Telecom

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] SK Telecom and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power announced on the 13th that they will introduce a ‘Private-5G Based Emergency Communication Solution’ for second-level response in case of wired communication system failures at domestic power plants.

The core of this solution is to automatically switch to wireless communication based on Private-5G within seconds when a failure occurs in the wired communication equipment connecting the field and the power plant control room, resolving the failure within seconds to prevent any disruption in power plant operations.

Currently, when a wired communication failure occurs, an administrator must be dispatched to the failure site to resolve it. Repair, recovery, and normalization can take from a few hours to several days.

Earlier, SK Telecom and KHNP successfully conducted a field demonstration at Yangyang Pumped Storage Power Plant, connecting the upper dam and the lower control room via wireless communication to verify the effectiveness of the ‘Private-5G Based Emergency Communication Solution.’

SK Telecom and KHNP have decided to continuously expand the commercialization of the ‘Private-5G Based Emergency Communication Solution’ and its application to domestic pumped storage and nuclear power plants.

Jeon Hye-su, Head of Digital Innovation Promotion at Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, said, “Since 2019, through continuous cooperation with SK Telecom, we have achieved the digital transformation goals of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power,” and added, “We will continue strategic cooperation with SK Telecom in the future.” Shin Yong-sik, Head of IoT at SK Telecom, stated, “Through 5G, we can contribute to stable electricity production and supply. We are pleased to introduce a new solution that will serve as a model case for ESG management.”

Meanwhile, SK Telecom and KHNP have been jointly promoting various projects since signing a memorandum of understanding for smart plant construction in 2019. Last year, after the commercialization of SK Telecom’s Private-5G, they developed mobile-based tasks such as a real-time mobile situation sharing system at power plants and a hydropower terrain integrated management system using industrial drones by utilizing a highly secure wireless network. They are also working on expanding the wireless network.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.