Jung Eui-sun and Choi Tae-won Form 'Hydrogen Alliance'... Meeting at Prime Minister-led Hydrogen Economy Committee

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyewon] Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Euisun and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won are meeting again on the theme of 'hydrogen.'

According to the business community on the 1st, Chairman Chung and Chairman Chey will attend the 3rd Hydrogen Economy Committee held on the afternoon of the 2nd at the SK Incheon Petrochemical headquarters in Incheon, presided over by Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, to discuss ways to accelerate the hydrogen economy.

The Hydrogen Economy Committee, chaired by the Prime Minister, is a hydrogen economy control tower composed of eight related ministries including the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, as well as private experts from industry, academia, and civic groups. Chairman Chung is one of the private members of the Hydrogen Economy Committee.

Before the meeting, the two companies are also expected to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Incheon City and others to establish a foundation for hydrogen business.

According to this agreement, Hyundai Motor is expected to utilize hydrogen produced by SK in the future, and Hyundai Motor will provide hydrogen vehicles to SK, indicating cooperation between the two companies.

The business community's steps toward realizing a hydrogen society are accelerating. Earlier, Hyundai Motor Group signed a business agreement with POSCO Group on the 16th of last month to cooperate in various ways in the hydrogen business sector. First, they decided to gradually convert 1,500 vehicles such as trucks operating at POSCO's Pohang and Gwangyang steelworks into Hyundai Motor's hydrogen electric vehicles. As a mid- to long-term task, they agreed to jointly conduct research and development to establish a hydrogen reduction steelworks, known as the 'dream steelworks' with zero carbon emissions.

Hyundai Motor Group is mass-producing hydrogen electric vehicles Nexo, hydrogen trucks Xcient, and hydrogen buses Elec City, aiming to produce 500,000 hydrogen electric vehicles and 700,000 hydrogen fuel cell systems by 2030.

SK Group is gathering hydrogen business capabilities by establishing a dedicated hydrogen business organization called the 'Hydrogen Business Promotion Team' at SK Inc., an investment holding company, with about 20 specialized personnel from related companies such as SK Innovation and SK E&S at the end of last year.

SK Inc. made its first investment this year by investing a total of 1.85 trillion won with SK E&S in Plug Power, a global leading hydrogen company in the United States, securing about 10% of the shares and becoming the largest shareholder of Plug Power. They also plan to establish a joint venture (JV) with Plug Power within the year.

SK plans to build liquefied hydrogen production facilities with an annual capacity of 30,000 tons starting in 2023, centered on its subsidiary SK E&S, and supply liquefied hydrogen to the metropolitan area. To this end, they plan to receive by-product hydrogen from SK Innovation.

SK Incheon Petrochemical, under SK Innovation, is considered an optimal location adjacent to the metropolitan area, the largest demand area, to efficiently solve cost issues related to long-distance hydrogen transportation.