AI Data Center Market Set to Expand Further as Cable Industry Accelerates Push into North American AI Data Centers

[Financial News] The North American AI data center market is expected to expand further, with NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang signaling approximately $1 trillion in investment in U.S. artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure this year. Korean cable manufacturers, which regard the United States as a key strategic market, are accelerating their push into the market by expanding production capacity.
According to industry sources on the 8th, Jensen Huang said at the Group of Twenty (G20) Innovation Ministers’ Meeting on the 2nd, local time, that approximately $1 trillion (about 1,359 trillion won) would be invested this year in U.S. AI infrastructure, including AI data centers. This is twice the $500 billion that NVIDIA is currently seeking to raise with financial institutions for AI data center construction in North America.
The three major Korean cable manufacturers are proactively expanding production capacity to target the North American AI data center market amid a “supercycle.” They are also broadening their business operations, as large-scale investment in North American transmission networks continues alongside the replacement of aging power grids.
LS Cable is building a plant in Mexico with an investment of approximately 230 billion won to expand production capacity for busducts, a key power-distribution product for AI data centers. In South Korea, the company is also pursuing an additional expansion of its Donghae facility. An LS Cable official said, “Orders for busducts are pouring in to the point that our existing lines cannot handle them,” adding, “We are increasing utilization by deploying more personnel.”
LS Cable is also building the largest subsea cable plant in Virginia, United States, with LS GreenLink, its key subsidiary for targeting the North American market.
Gaon Cable plans to develop its U.S. subsidiary, LSCUS, into a supply hub for busducts and data-center cables. LSCUS’s AI data center-related sales in the first half of the year already reached approximately 240 billion won, up 83% from the first half of last year. Gaon Cable also plans to invest approximately 76 billion won in its North Carolina plant to double its production capacity for medium-voltage cables used in data centers.
Taihan Cable & Solution is expanding its portfolio beyond existing extra-high-voltage power grids to include subsea cables and solutions for replacing aging power grids. The company is building a 640-kV HVDC subsea cable plant in Dangjin, South Chungcheong Province, and a 400-kV extra-high-voltage cable plant in Vietnam. It has also secured two cable-laying vessels for transporting and installing subsea cables. A Taihan Cable & Solution official said, “We will expand our presence in the North American market by cooperating with major power utilities and customers.”
As cable manufacturers continue to win major projects, their order backlogs are also expected to grow at an even faster pace.
LS Cable’s order backlog stood at 9.5535 trillion won at the end of the first half of this year, up 53.6% from 6.2197 trillion won a year earlier. Taihan Cable & Solution’s backlog also rose 40.6% over the same period, from 2.8907 trillion won to 4.0629 trillion won. The two companies’ combined order backlog reached 13.6164 trillion won.
[email protected] Park So-hyun Reporter