SK Chairman Chey Tae-won: "Korea and Japan Can Strengthen Price Bargaining Power by Jointly Purchasing U.S. LNG"

Chey Tae-won, Chairman of SK Group, stated regarding the import of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) that "if Korea and Japan make joint purchases, the scale will increase and their bargaining power in price negotiations will be strengthened," according to a report by the Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) on May 30.

Chey Tae-won SK Chairman.

In an interview published by Nikkei that day, Chairman Chey identified energy and semiconductor materials as key areas for cooperation between the two countries.

He assessed that, among the areas of energy cooperation, joint development of hydrogen technology and shared use of energy storage facilities have a high likelihood of being realized.

Chairman Chey, apparently with the tariff policies of the Donald Trump administration in mind, remarked, "The World Trade Organization (WTO) system has collapsed and the rules of competition have changed," adding, "If Korea and Japan build an economic community, they can reduce various costs and enhance international competitiveness."

He also commented on SK hynix's high-bandwidth memory (HBM), which holds the world's top market share, saying, "Due to the high manufacturing difficulty, we have high expectations for Japanese companies that have strengths in equipment and materials," and expressed his desire "to integrate the ecosystem between Korean and Japanese semiconductor companies."

Regarding Kioxia Holdings (formerly Toshiba Memory), a Japanese NAND flash memory manufacturer in which SK hynix has an indirect stake, he said, "We want to approach it not just as a financial investor, but in a strategic manner."

Nikkei reported that the interview with Chairman Chey was conducted on May 29, when he visited Japan to attend the Nikkei Forum held in Tokyo.