SK Ecoplant to Discover Startups with Eco-Friendly Innovative Technologies

Formation of a Venture Capital Fund Investing in Startups with D3 Jubilee Partners

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim On-yu] SK ecoplant (formerly SK Construction), expanding its eco-friendly business, is set to invest in startups to secure new green technologies.

On the 15th, SK ecoplant announced that it will establish a venture capital (VC) fund together with domestic impact investment firm D3 Jubilee Partners to invest in startups possessing innovative eco-friendly technologies and to operate various win-win programs. Impact investment refers to investments that generate profits while simultaneously achieving social and environmental outcomes.

SK ecoplant and D3 Jubilee Partners applied for the Ministry of Environment’s Future Environmental Business account under the ‘2021 Second Regular Contribution Project of the Korea Venture Investment Corp’s Mother Fund’ and were finally selected last month to create an ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) fund investing in eco-friendly businesses.

Including the Mother Fund, SK ecoplant and others will make the initial contributions to form the fund, and will subsequently recruit additional financial institutions interested in ESG investments. The fund is planned to be established with approximately 30 billion KRW.

Since last year, SK ecoplant has positioned ESG as a core value in corporate management and has been actively promoting eco-friendly and new energy businesses to realize a circular economy. It is currently actively securing eco-friendly technologies and investing in solutions. D3 Jubilee Partners, established in 2011 for impact investment purposes, focuses on ESG investments in areas such as energy, water, waste, climate change, aging, and urban issues.

Both companies will discover startups with new technologies related to eco-friendly and new energy businesses and engage in customized ESG investments to create a sustainable eco-friendly industrial ecosystem. They also plan to operate various programs for mutual growth, including linking SK member companies and global partners, testbeds and joint research, acceleration programs, and financial support by utilizing the OTO (One Team Operation) platform, which collaborates with stakeholders as one team from the early stages of business.

Last month, SK ecoplant changed its corporate name and decided to invest a total of 3 trillion KRW by 2023 to develop new eco-friendly businesses and pursue M&A with domestic and international technology innovation companies. Recently, it acquired four waste treatment companies in the Chungcheong region, becoming the number one domestic player in waste incineration. Leveraging this fund formation, SK ecoplant plans to secure investment resources for eco-friendly technologies and actively discover technology innovation companies.

Kim Byung-kwon, Head of SK ecoplant’s OTO Center, said, “Through this venture capital fund, we will discover and nurture startups with innovative eco-friendly technologies and practice win-win cooperation to realize a circular economy. We plan to continuously secure investment resources to grow into Asia’s leading environmental company.”