Naver (035420.KS) has signed a direct power purchase agreement (PPA) with GS Wind Power and will acquire a 30% stake in the wind farm. The deal marks the first case in Korea in which an RE100 member company has secured renewable energy by directly investing in a renewable energy generation entity.
Naver announced Tuesday that it has signed a PPA with GS Wind Power and plans to supply electricity to its data centers, including Gak Sejong and Gak Chuncheon, starting in the first half of 2028. Through the deal, the company aims to raise its renewable energy conversion rate to around 46% of total corporate electricity consumption by 2029.
The wind farm GS is building in Yeongyang County, North Gyeongsang Province, can generate approximately 180 gigawatt-hours of electricity annually. Starting with this contract, the two companies plan to develop their partnership into a strategic and sustained cooperative relationship.
"By moving beyond simple power purchases to directly investing in a generation entity, we have secured a long-term and stable supply of renewable energy in the domestic market," Naver said. Conventional fossil fuel-based power procurement entails greenhouse gas emissions, making RE100 achievement difficult and constraining additional investment. The direct investment in renewable energy resolves these constraints and creates an environment for more active investment going forward, the company said.
Since declaring its "2040 Carbon Negative" goal in 2020, Naver has pursued the transition to renewables through three PPA contracts covering solar and small hydropower. With this large-scale wind PPA, the company plans to more actively reduce greenhouse gas emissions from its AI and cloud data centers.
"As data center power demand rapidly increases with the expansion of AI and cloud services, securing renewable energy is an essential task," said Lim Dong-ah, Naver's External and ESG Policy Leader. "Through a new model of direct investment in generation entities, we will strengthen the stability of energy supply and continue our efforts to achieve the 2040 Carbon Negative goal."
