South Korea’s internet company Naver Corporation has signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with GS E&R, and a deal to acquire 30 percent stake in the company’s wind farm currently under construction in Yeongyang, North Gyeongsang Province. This is as the demand for AI and cloud services continues to increase around the world, and a concurrent mounting pressure to meet RE100 and carbon-neutral targets in the region.
Overview of Naver Yeongyang Wind Farm Power Purchase Agreement
At the center of Naver’s deal is a direct renewable energy PPA with GS Wind Power, plus an equity investment that gives Naver 30% stake in a wind farm under development in Yeongyang County.
Key features include:
Annual supply: 180 GWh of wind-generated electricity
Contract duration: 25 years
Commercial operation: Expected from 2028
Supply destination: Naver’s flagship data centers, including GAK Sejong and GAK Chuncheon.
This marks one of the largest onshore wind PPAs in South Korea and the first instance of a domestic RE100 company directly investing in a power generator. Naver is also the first web company in Korea to build and operate its own data center, which was built in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province.
The agreement also forms part of a broader effort to secure stable, long-term energy supply for AI-driven data center expansion. This is as electricity demand continues to rise sharply with the addition of more data centers in South Korea including the Actis–GS internet data center project in Seoul – a project that has since expanded into a multi-site hyperscale portfolio after first announcement in 2020.
Naver Yeongyang Wind Farm PPA and the Korean Data Center Market
The Naver-Yeongyang wind farm PPA deal shows the ongoing shift in the Korean data center market where:
1) Energy constraints are shaping data center market
South Korea faces high industrial electricity prices and delays in grid infrastructure expansion. These, plus limited renewable energy penetration of about 10% of generation, make energy procurement the main difficulty for hyperscale growth. This is when compared to land availability and/or connectivity infrastructure.
2) Transition from buyer to energy investor
Unlike traditional PPAs, Naver’s model also includes direct equity participation in generation assets and long-term fixed renewable supply. This reduces exposure to volatile electricity market and positions the company as both a data center operator and a quasi energy investor.
3) AI-driven demand
The rapid increase in AI workloads is also increasing power demand across Korea’s digital infrastructure sector. This is forcing operators, like Naver to secure guaranteed, scalable energy sources ahead of capacity expansion.
Fact Sheet for Naver Data Centers PPA from Yeongyang Wind Farm
Location: Yeongyang in North Gyeongsang Province, South Korea
Energy Generation: Onshore wind
Capacity Supply: 180 GWh annually
Contract Duration: 25 years
Start of Supply: 2028
Structure: Direct PPA plus a 30% equity stake
Key Innovation: First direct generator investment by a Korean RE100 firm
