SK Construction Establishes Joint Venture to Localize Highest Efficiency Fuel Cells

▲ The main fuel cell equipment installed at KT Daedeok 2 Research Center, supplied and constructed by SK Engineering & Construction in August 2019. (Provided by SK Engineering & Construction)

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] SK Engineering & Construction has officially launched its business by establishing a joint venture to domesticize the world's most efficient fuel cells.

On the 16th, SK Engineering & Construction announced that it had completed the establishment of Bloom SK Fuel Cell LLC, a joint venture with Bloom Energy, a global fuel cell main equipment manufacturer based in the United States. Previously, in September last year, the two companies held a joint investment agreement (JVA) signing ceremony for the establishment of a joint venture (JV) and a domestic production plant for the production and supply of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC).

The joint venture's shares are owned 49% by SK Engineering & Construction and 51% by Bloom Energy. Production facilities are currently being installed at the Gumi plant in Gyeongbuk Province, with plans to start full-scale domestic production within this year. The production scale will begin at 50 MW annually and gradually expand to 400 MW in the future.

The domestic production of SOFC is highly significant as it represents the domestic localization of the highest specification products. Going forward, Bloom SK Fuel Cell plans to leverage the excellent quality and price competitiveness of domestic components through collaboration with specialized small and medium-sized enterprises.

An SK Engineering & Construction official stated, “After the full-scale domestic production of SOFC by Bloom SK Fuel Cell, we will further develop it as a procurement, production, and service hub targeting the Asian market.” He added, “Through close cooperation with Bloom Energy, we will continuously discover new business opportunities in the global market while creating a win-win growth role model that greatly expands overseas export channels for domestic small and medium parts suppliers.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.