Choi Tae-won's Style Broad-Spectrum Economic Diplomacy

"Investing 60 Trillion Won in the US... Half Poured into Eco-Friendly Sectors"
Continuous Meetings with US Political and Business Figures
Expressed Intent to Contribute to Carbon Reduction

Chairman Chey Tae-won of SK Group (right) is meeting with Mitch McConnell, Republican Senate Majority Leader, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on the 27th of last month.

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Daeyeol] SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won met with influential political and business figures in the United States and conveyed his intention to invest more than 60 trillion won in the U.S. by 2030. Notably, he stated that about half of this investment would be poured into eco-friendly sectors to contribute to reducing local carbon emissions. This move aims to publicize corporate responsibility on environmental issues on the international stage amid intensified power struggles among major countries over climate change responses, seeking empathy from global stakeholders.

According to SK on the 2nd, Chairman Chey visited Washington D.C. for two days starting on the 27th of last month (local time) and met with bipartisan leaders including Mitch McConnell, Republican Senate Majority Leader, and James Clyburn, Democratic House Majority Whip. At this meeting, Chairman Chey shared SK’s strategies to tackle climate change and the eco-friendly business visions of key affiliates such as battery and hydrogen businesses operating locally, exchanging opinions. Leader McConnell is recognized as the top-ranking Republican politician, having served as a senator for 37 years and as majority leader for 15 years. Representative Clyburn is also a prominent politician ranked third in the Democratic House leadership.

Chairman Chey said, "We are proactively addressing climate change by setting goals such as reducing 200 million tons of carbon, which corresponds to 1% of the global carbon reduction target of 21 billion tons by 2030." He added, "Of the $52 billion (61.2 trillion won) planned for investment in the U.S. by 2030, about half will be concentrated in eco-friendly sectors such as electric vehicle batteries, hydrogen, and energy solutions to contribute to carbon reduction within the U.S."

He explained that this could contribute approximately 100 million tons, about 5% of the U.S. government's greenhouse gas reduction target by 2030. Chairman Chey has consistently emphasized, both domestically and internationally, in official settings and within the company, that companies with significant responsibility for climate change and environmental issues should actively respond using their technology and capital. At a CEO seminar held last month, he stressed, "We must strive to contribute to carbon reduction in countries where SK operates, such as the U.S., China, Europe, and Japan, to earn respect and support from local social stakeholders."

Publicizing Corporate Responsibility on Environmental Issues
Gaining Empathy from Stakeholders
Joining President Moon Jae-in’s European Delegation
Inspecting Battery Business in Hungary

Regarding the recently decided electric vehicle battery business in the U.S., he also requested interest and cooperation from local political circles. Chairman Chey met with Republican Senators Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty from Tennessee and said, "Following the Georgia plant being built by SK On, we have decided to build large-scale battery plants in Kentucky and Tennessee by 2027 in partnership with Ford." He added, "Once completed, these three states will create about 11,000 high-quality jobs."

SK On, together with Ford, established the joint venture BlueOvalSK and plans to invest $11.4 billion (about 13.3 trillion won) to build a 129GWh battery plant in Kentucky and Tennessee. SK will invest $4.45 billion (5.2 trillion won) of this amount. Local lawmakers expressed, "We expect SK’s battery business to contribute to stabilizing the U.S. battery supply chain and to lead to the establishment of a battery ecosystem that recycles used batteries in the future." They also pledged, "We will spare no support to ensure smooth manpower supply through collaboration with local universities."

Chairman Chey met with a wide range of senior officials from the White House and others, including Democratic Representative Ami Bera, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia-Pacific, discussing broad topics such as strengthening U.S.-Korea friendship, activating future business investments like bio industries, climate change response, and geopolitical issues. Chairman Chey said, "We will strengthen bio-business cooperation with the U.S. through SK Pharmteco, a contract manufacturing organization for active pharmaceutical ingredients headquartered in the U.S." Representative Bera expressed gratitude, saying, "The two countries’ companies can create great synergy in future business sectors such as bio and alternative foods."

On the 1st, Chairman Chey held a video conference with Jim Farley, CEO of Ford, promising active support to ensure smooth construction of the joint plant. Earlier, on the 31st of last month, he met with Susan Clark, Chair of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and agreed on expanding exchanges and cooperation between the two countries.

After completing a six-day schedule in the U.S., Chairman Chey immediately moved to Hungary on the 1st to join President Moon Jae-in’s delegation on a state visit to Europe. The itinerary includes meetings with the chairman of the Hungarian Chamber of Commerce, the Korea-Visegr?d Group (Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia) Business Forum, and a state banquet.

On the 2nd, he plans to visit SK On’s battery plant in Kom?rom, Hungary, to review the local battery business status and encourage employees. SK On operates or is constructing three battery plants in Kom?rom and Iv??ca, Hungary. SK Group explained, "We focused on delivering a ‘global story’ that can increase the interests of not only key stakeholders in the U.S. but also the entire Korean business community." They added, "This is intended to secure broad support worldwide through ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management."

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