GS, SMR, etc. 21 Trillion Won Investment Over 5 Years... 22,000 New Hires

Energy 14 Trillion... "Contributing to Stable National Energy Security"
New Businesses & Ventures 10 Trillion... Expected Indirect Employment Creation Effect

Huh Tae-soo, CEO of GS and Chairman of GS Group. (Photo by GS)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] GS announced on the 26th that it will invest 21 trillion KRW over five years until 2026 to secure future growth engines and strengthen competitiveness in core businesses. During this period, it plans to hire 22,000 new employees. In line with the Yoon Seok-yeol administration's policy direction of 'private sector-led growth,' major conglomerates have been announcing mid- to long-term investment plans worth trillions to hundreds of trillions of won, and GS has joined this investment trend.

By sector, the investments include ▲14 trillion KRW in the energy sector for expanding GS Caltex's petrochemical materials business, investing in GS Energy's eco-friendly energy new technologies and overseas resource development, and renewable power investments by GS EPS and GS E&R ▲3 trillion KRW in the distribution and service sector for expanding GS Retail stores, digitalization, and accelerating new business growth ▲4 trillion KRW in the construction and infrastructure sector for new growth businesses and social overhead capital investments by GS Construction and GS Global.

The largest portion is in the energy sector, which includes significant investments to secure future energy in the decarbonization era such as small modular reactors (SMR), hydrogen (blue ammonia), and renewable eco-friendly power generation.

GS Energy became a shareholder of the US-based NuScale Power, which has secured world-class SMR technology, and is currently aiming for next-generation SMR development and global market entry together with Doosan Enerbility and Samsung C&T. It also started a blue ammonia business, considered the crude oil of the hydrogen economy era, jointly with the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) of the United Arab Emirates.

Over the next five years, GS plans to actively develop renewable power projects such as solar and wind power, and GS EPS and GS E&R will swiftly transition to eco-friendly power generation to contribute to stable national energy supply. Nearly half (48%) of the total investment amount, 10 trillion KRW, will be poured into new businesses and ventures. To this end, GS has selected climate change response, resource circulation, deep tech, bio, and distribution as five key investment areas.

Under this policy, GS will focus on investing in early-stage domestic startups through GS Ventures, a venture investment company launched earlier this year, while also investing in the latest technology startups in North America through GS Futures in Silicon Valley, USA.

Based on these investments, GS has set the number of new hires over the next five years at 22,000. Although GS's average annual hiring over the past three years was around 3,000, the demand for personnel needed for new businesses and digital transformation is increasing, so it plans to hire more than 4,000 people annually on average over five years. This represents an increase of more than 30% annually compared to before.

GS expects indirect employment creation effects through venture investments. By expanding investments so that growing startups can attract excellent talent, it believes that the overall business ecosystem growth and employment creation effects can be enjoyed simultaneously. Along with these investments, GS plans to continuously develop startup nurturing programs such as GS Challenge, a 400 billion KRW win-win fund, productivity improvement support, and sales channel support programs to expand exchanges and foster win-win cooperation with small and medium-sized partner companies. It will provide business infrastructure to venture companies invested in by each affiliate and establish a system to cooperate and share results throughout the entire process from new business conception to commercialization.

GS Chairman Huh Tae-soo told employees, "Consistent will and execution to leverage changes in the business environment such as digital and eco-friendliness as opportunities are the keys to GS's future growth," adding, "We will build a healthy business ecosystem through active venture investments and open innovation."