Korea-Lithuania Business Meeting... "Bio, Energy, ICT Economic Cooperation"

KCCI Hosts 'Business Dialogue'
Vice Chairman Park Il-jun: "Victory in the Advanced Industry Competition"

Korean and Lithuanian businesspeople gathered to unite their intentions for economic cooperation in advanced industries such as bio, energy, and information and communication technology (ICT). Representatives from major groups including Samsung, SK, and LG attended to discuss the status of construction projects and ways to enhance cooperation between companies.

Park Il-jun, Executive Vice President of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, is delivering a greeting at the "2024 First Half Year Youth Internship Completion Ceremony" held on the 21st of last month at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry Hall in Jung-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) announced that it held the "Korea-Lithuania Business Dialogue" on the 23rd (local time) in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, together with the Lithuanian Chamber of Commerce Association.

As part of the Korean economic delegation dispatched by KCCI, participants included Park Il-jun, KCCI Senior Vice Chairman; Jeon Jo-young, Korean Ambassador to Lithuania; Hwang Seon-gwan, Vice President of SK Biopharm; Lee Cheol-ho, Executive Director of POSCO International; Ahn Hyuk-tae, President of Ilsin IDI; Kim Hyun-mo, CEO of Korea Marine Bio Cluster; and Park Hyung-gon, Executive Director of Deloitte Korea. About 20 other participants included heads of major companies’ European branches such as Bu Ja-young, Head of Samsung Electronics Latvia Branch; Son Seong-jun, Head of LG Electronics Latvia Branch; and Ha Ji-hyun, Head of Shinhan Bank Frankfurt Branch.

On the Lithuanian side, around 30 people attended, including Karolis Zemaitis, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Economy and Innovation; Sigitas Gailiunas, Chairman of the Lithuanian Chamber of Commerce Association; Sandra Smolina, Director of the Lithuanian Investment Agency; and Vitaliya Kulaginaite, Director of Baltic Alloy.

Lithuania is South Korea’s largest trading partner among the three Baltic countries (Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia). Diplomatic relations were established in 1991, and in 2022, trade volume surpassed a record high of $500 million (approximately 650 billion KRW). This year, the Lithuanian Embassy in Korea was inaugurated, and for the first time, a resident ambassador was appointed to Lithuania.

Senior Vice Chairman Park Il-jun said, "Both countries have overcome geopolitical limitations and grown from 'small countries' into 'small but strong countries.' By combining economic growth know-how and technology, the two countries can become winners in the advanced industry competition between nations."

He introduced Lithuania’s excellent photonics engineering technology, noting that it holds half of the global market for pico-second (one trillionth of a second) lasers. He also mentioned that the bioindustry has an average annual growth rate of 22%. He added, "If Korea, which has technological capabilities in semiconductors and electric vehicles, cooperates with Lithuania, a leader in photonics engineering, their technological competitiveness will be further strengthened. I hope Korea, which has the world’s second-largest biopharmaceutical manufacturing capacity, and Lithuania join forces to lead the advanced bioindustry."

Ambassador Jeon Jo-young said that although both countries have achieved economic growth based on human resources without abundant natural resources, they share common challenges such as aging populations. He emphasized the need for cooperation in energy, healthcare, ICT, and finance sectors.

At the event, the Lithuanian Investment Agency explained its national infrastructure development projects. These included the construction of "BIO CITY," the largest biotechnology hub in Europe; the new southern port construction related to Klaipeda Port, a key transportation hub in Northern Europe; wind power plant development; and green hydrogen production and charging station projects. They discussed cooperation plans with Korean companies. Klaipeda Port is the largest port in Lithuania.

From the Korean side, Executive Director Park Hyung-gon presented promising industries for bilateral cooperation. He shared cases of Korean companies such as Hyundai Motor establishing local production bases in Europe. In the medium to short term, leading companies in battery and pharmaceutical sectors are highly likely to use Europe as a strategic global market base and production hub.

KCCI also announced that it held the "Korea-Czech Business Forum" in Prague, Czech Republic, on the 20th. It stated that it is conducting private economic diplomacy activities by dispatching economic delegations to Lithuania as well. Korean businesspeople are scheduled to visit Klaipeda Port and the economic free zone the following day to discuss strategies for Korean companies to penetrate the European market using Lithuanian transport and port facilities.

Lee Seong-woo, Director of the International Trade Headquarters at KCCI, said, "KCCI will strengthen private cooperation to help domestic companies secure allies and create new business opportunities in the global advanced market by utilizing the worldwide network of chambers of commerce in over 140 countries."