Hanwha Solutions Fined 200 Million Won in First Trial for Unfair Support to Chairman's Family

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] Hanwha Solutions, indicted on charges of 'preferentially allocating work to companies owned by the family of the group head,' was sentenced to a fine of 200 million won in the first trial.

On the morning of the 12th, the Seoul Central District Court Criminal Division 23 (Chief Judge Jo Byeonggu) delivered this verdict to Hanwha Solutions, which was charged with violating the Fair Trade Act.

The court stated, "Each offense in this case constitutes an act of 'preferentially allocating work' to affiliated companies of a conglomerate," and criticized, "It undermined the fairness of transactions and resulted in restricting other business partners from participating in fair market competition." "For over 10 years, transportation volumes were concentrated unfairly, providing undue economic benefits, and the transaction payments were excessive compared to similar business partners," adding, "Although the internal side seemed to recognize the issues, the management did not take appropriate measures to improve the situation."

However, the court also noted, "Considering the establishment of competitive bidding plans related to logistics and operations, the significant strengthening of compliance monitoring functions to prevent recurrence, and the fact that the Fair Trade Commission imposed a surcharge," these factors were taken into account in sentencing. Furthermore, regarding some charges from January 2010 to February 13, 2015, the court ruled not guilty on the grounds that "the punishment provisions under the former Fair Trade Act applied by the prosecution could only be enforced from February 14, 2015, according to its supplementary provisions."

Previously, Hanwha Solutions was indicted for preferentially allocating export container transportation volumes to Han Express, owned by the family of Kim Seung-yeon, chairman of Hanwha Group, from 2008 to 2019, resulting in over 9 billion won in excessive transportation fees.

Hanwha Solutions was also charged with preferentially allocating tanker truck transportation volumes worth approximately 150 billion won from 2010 to 2018 while selling hydrochloric acid, caustic soda, and other chemicals.

The Fair Trade Commission imposed corrective orders and a surcharge of 22.97 billion won on Hanwha Solutions in 2020 and subsequently reported the case to the prosecution.

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