SK Construction Partners with Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power to Promote Hydrogen and Renewable Energy Convergence Projects

Ahn Jae-hyun, President of SK Construction, and Jung Jae-hoon, President of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power

[Asia Economy Reporter Onyu Lim] SK Engineering & Construction, which has declared the strengthening of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management, has taken active steps to revitalize the hydrogen industry.

On the 12th, SK Engineering & Construction announced that on the 9th, it signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to strengthen cooperation in hydrogen and renewable energy convergence projects with Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) at the G.plant headquarters in Jongno-gu, Seoul.

About 10 officials, including SK Engineering & Construction President Ahn Jae-hyun and KHNP President Jung Jae-hoon, attended the signing ceremony to unite their intentions to promote eco-friendly hydrogen and renewable energy convergence projects.

According to the agreement, the two companies will cooperate on ▲ development and promotion of energy self-sufficient and RE100 projects ▲ demonstration and commercialization of green hydrogen production based on water electrolysis technology (SOEC) ▲ overseas expansion of convergence projects based on fuel cells (SOFC).

Through this agreement, the two companies plan to apply high-efficiency renewable energy supply and an integrated energy management system to the 'Changwon Industrial Complex Energy Self-Sufficient Infrastructure Construction Project,' the first domestic RE100 platform construction and demonstration project. This project is undertaken by the Changwon SG Energy Consortium, which includes six companies such as SK Engineering & Construction as the lead company and SK㈜ C&C. Through this, they aim to discover and operate eco-friendly, low-carbon business models capable of energy self-sufficiency and continue to cooperate on subsequent energy convergence projects such as smart green industrial complexes.

SK Engineering & Construction also plans to jointly promote a demonstration project producing green hydrogen by linking water electrolysis facilities, co-developed with U.S. company Bloom Energy, with KHNP’s renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power.

The two companies will actively cooperate on overseas expansion of convergence projects based on the world’s highest-performance fuel cells (SOFC) produced domestically through the fuel cell joint venture 'BloomSK Fuel Cell.' This is expected to contribute to the overseas export and co-growth of domestic component manufacturers with excellent quality and price competitiveness.

SK Engineering & Construction has adopted ESG as a new core value of management and has been rapidly transitioning its portfolio to eco-friendly and new energy businesses since last year. It officially entered the environmental industry by acquiring Korea’s top comprehensive environmental company, Environmental Facility Management (formerly EMC Holdings), last year, and is expanding into eco-friendly businesses such as hydrogen fuel cells, green renovation, and renewable energy as new energy businesses.

President Ahn Jae-hyun of SK Engineering & Construction said, “Through this agreement, we will further expand eco-friendly businesses and take a leading role in line with the government’s Green New Deal and carbon neutrality policies.”