SK Lubricants Invests 32.4 Billion KRW Stake in US Data Center Immersion Cooling Company

"Mid- to Long-Term Goal to Become a Comprehensive Thermal Management Solution Provider"

Commemorative photo of the equity investment agreement signing ceremony between SK Lubricants (SKL) and the US data center immersion cooling system specialist company GRC. (Photo by SKL)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] SK Lubricants (SKL), the lubricants business subsidiary of SK Innovation, announced on the 30th that it has made an equity investment of $25 million (approximately 32.4 billion KRW) in the US-based data center immersion cooling system specialist GRC.

On the 29th (local time), SKL held an equity investment signing ceremony at its Houston office in the United States, attended by SKL President Cha Gyutak and GRC CEO Peter Paulin. The two companies will jointly develop cooling oil using SKL's high-quality base oils and data center immersion cooling systems, and will promote standards and commercialization. They will also pursue securing carbon credits to officially recognize the carbon reduction contribution of the immersion cooling system.

Data center immersion cooling is a next-generation thermal management technology that cools by directly immersing data servers in cooling oil, known for its excellent cooling efficiency. The company explained that it can reduce power consumption by about 30% compared to conventional air cooling methods (which circulate low-temperature air or install fans for cooling), and can also cut investment and operating costs by more than 20%.

GRC's immersion cooling system. (Photo by SKL)

SKL currently holds the number one global market share in the premium base oil market. It has set a goal to focus on nurturing the thermal management business that uses premium base oils with excellent cooling performance as cooling oil as a future growth engine, aiming to grow into a "liquid-based comprehensive thermal management solution provider." President Cha emphasized, "With the activation of industries such as artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR), and autonomous driving, rapid growth of the high-density data center market is expected. Based on this equity investment, we will grow into a liquid-based comprehensive thermal management solution provider in the mid to long term."

GRC is a data center immersion cooling specialist company with core immersion cooling technology and know-how, holding numerous patents related to immersion cooling technology. CEO Paulin said, "Through this investment attraction, we will be able to expand data center cooling infrastructure worldwide."

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