"Record Orders Even Without NEOM City"... Taihan Cable's Next Step to Fill the 'Technology Gap'

Taihan Cable, which closed 2025 with record-breaking results, is now on the verge of surpassing 4 trillion won in both annual sales and order backlog this year. This achievement is attributed not just to external growth, but to the 'selection and concentration' strategy of targeting high-margin markets such as North America and Europe. However, the company still faces challenges in securing technological capabilities and construction capacity in the ultra-high voltage submarine cable market, which has become a mainstream sector.

According to the industry as of April 1, 2026, Taihan Cable's consolidated sales for the first quarter of this year are expected to reach 1.1181 trillion won, a 30% increase compared to the same period last year. Having exceeded 1 trillion won in quarterly sales for the first time in the fourth quarter of last year thanks to strong performance in the ultra-high voltage and submarine cable business, Taihan Cable is expected to maintain this momentum, achieving annual sales of 3.997 trillion won (+9.9% year-on-year) and operating profit of 157 billion won (+22.0%).

Notably, these results were achieved without any orders related to Saudi Arabia's 'NEOM City,' which had been highly anticipated in the past. At one point classified as a beneficiary of the NEOM City project, Taihan Cable boldly shifted its focus as local companies in Saudi Arabia ramped up low-cost competition, making order acquisition much more challenging. Instead, the company concentrated on high-profit markets such as North America, where there is huge demand for replacing aging power grids, Europe, which is actively investing in renewable energy, and Singapore, where power grid upgrades are underway. This strategic shift proved effective.

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As a result, Taihan Cable's order backlog reached a record high of 3.66 trillion won at the end of last year. The order proportion is comprised of 50% from Asia (including Korea), 30% from North America, 10% from Europe, and 10% from other regions. Considering it takes an average of 2.5 to 3 years for orders to be recognized as sales, there are expectations that the company's sales will be supported at a solid level through 2027 and beyond.

The company also benefits from being relatively insulated from risks such as U.S.-imposed tariffs and war-related uncertainties. For ultra-high voltage cables, where copper accounts for about 50-60% of production costs, copper derivative products are currently exempt from tariffs, and contract prices are fixed at the time of signing, meaning that rising copper prices actually work to the company’s advantage.

Sunbong Kim, a researcher at KB Securities, explained, "If the tariff imposed by the U.S. remains at a level similar to previous years, around 15%, the final tariff rate for ultra-high voltage cables is also estimated to be about 15.1%. It is understood that major ultra-high voltage cable manufacturers have already passed on most of the tariff burden to their North American customers."

Despite the robust order backlog and favorable industry conditions, Taihan Cable faces significant challenges for its 'next step.' The global submarine cable market is reorganizing around 525kV class high-voltage direct current (HVDC), but Taihan Cable is considered to have relatively little experience in external grid production. As offshore wind farms and cross-border power grid projects become larger, securing additional submarine cable lay vessels (CLVs) capable of carrying and installing large quantities of cables at once has also become a critical issue.

Jaehyuk Jang, a researcher at Meritz Securities, pointed out, "Taihan Cable has no experience in producing 525kV submarine cables for external grids, and the load capacity of its existing lay vessels is limited, so its experience with large-scale external grid construction is also lacking. If the company's large-scale submarine cable production capacity continues to expand, the need to secure new CLVs for turnkey projects will inevitably grow." The cable load capacity of 'Phalos,' the CLV acquired by Taihan Cable in 2023, is about 4,400 tons, roughly half that of its competitors.

CLV Lay Vessel 'Pharos' Deployed in Domestic Offshore Wind Power Project

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Some industry observers expect that the national project 'West Coast Energy Expressway,' promoted by Korea Electric Power Corporation, will be a key stage for Taihan Cable to prove its technological prowess. The project aims to build a high-voltage direct current transmission network to transport renewable energy, such as offshore wind power from the West Coast, to major demand centers like the Seoul metropolitan area. The core section of the first phase, from Saemangeum to the metropolitan area, is being pushed for completion by 2030, one year earlier than initially planned. KEPCO plans to complete the basic design within this year and announce tenders for key equipment procurement early next year.

To this end, Taihan Cable is preparing to operate its second submarine cable plant, capable of producing up to 640kV HVDC, within this year, while also seeking to secure a vessel larger than the Phalos for this project. In particular, a direct competition with its largest domestic rival, LS Cable, is inevitable, and success in winning the first phase of the project is expected to give Taihan Cable a competitive edge in the second and third phases as well. The company is therefore expected to mobilize its full capabilities for this opportunity.

An industry official commented, "If Taihan Cable demonstrates stable performance in the first phase, it is expected to secure long-term momentum by winning subsequent second and third phase projects as well."

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