SK E&S and Partner HSCMT, Representative Case of Korea-Uzbek Economic Cooperation

Recognized for Contribution to Local District Heating Modernization Project

The export business to Uzbekistan by a domestic small and medium-sized enterprise (SME), supported by SK E&S, was recently introduced as a representative achievement of economic cooperation between the two countries during the presidential visit event. The win-win efforts between SK E&S and its partner companies have led to enhanced competitiveness of partner products and expanded exports, establishing a successful co-growth model between large and small-medium enterprises.

According to SK E&S on the 20th, HSCMT Co., Ltd., a domestic smart measuring instrument manufacturer, attended the 'Korea-Uzbekistan Business Forum' held in Tashkent on the 14th and presented a case of entering the Uzbekistan market through technology developed in collaboration with a large company. This business forum was an economic exchange event held on the occasion of President Yoon Suk-yeol's state visit, attended by about 500 key businesspeople and government officials from both countries. It is reported that HSCMT Co., Ltd. was the only company invited as a presenter on economic cooperation cases between the two countries.

In the presentation, HSCMT Co., Ltd. shared details about supplying domestically produced ultrasonic heat meters to Uzbekistan, developed through SK E&S's win-win cooperation fund support project. An ultrasonic heat meter is a device that measures the thermal energy consumed in heating systems using ultrasonic technology to calculate charges. Compared to conventional heat meters, it can accurately calculate real-time thermal energy consumption, offering the advantage of improving energy management efficiency.

HSCMT Co., Ltd. officially entered Uzbekistan in 2019 by participating in a district heating pilot project and is currently involved in the modernization of district heating by supplying ultrasonic heat meters to 13 heat source facilities in the Tashkent area in 2023.

Kim Byung-hoon, CEO of HSCMT Co., Ltd., who spoke at the forum, explained, "With SK E&S's active technical and financial support, we were able to quickly develop ultrasonic heat meters suitable for the local environment, which enabled our entry into the Uzbekistan market."

Although HSCMT Co., Ltd. succeeded in domestic localization of ultrasonic heat meters for the first time in Korea in 2014, it faced the challenge of developing high-quality products with enhanced durability and safety to expand overseas business. Understanding these difficulties faced by the partner company, SK E&S selected the advancement of HSCMT's ultrasonic heat meters as a win-win cooperation fund support project in July 2022 and supported research and development (R&D). Narae Energy Service, a subsidiary of SK E&S operating a district energy business, assisted with field testing of the newly developed prototype. From January last year, it played the role of a test bed by installing the prototype at the business site for about 12 months to support data verification.

Through this, HSCMT Co., Ltd. succeeded in developing an advanced product capable of supplying to the Tashkent area, which is exposed to high temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius in summer and strong ultraviolet rays, just 18 months after starting development, in December last year.

CEO Kim emphasized, "The newly developed heat meter was recognized for its quality excellence locally and became the foundation for export expansion. This achievement is not only a successful win-win model between large and small-medium enterprises but also a case that confirms the importance of cooperation."

HSCMT Co., Ltd. plans to expand its business beyond simply exporting heat meters to Uzbekistan by building an integrated control system that manages efficient energy supply and consumption.

Since 2019, SK E&S has been creating and supporting a win-win cooperation fund with the Foundation for Large and Small Enterprises and Agricultural Cooperation under the Ministry of SMEs and Startups to promote co-growth with stakeholders. In 2021, SK E&S was recognized for its efforts to solve environmental and social issues by discovering and supporting promising eco-friendly SMEs and received the Presidential Citation in the field of win-win cooperation between large and small enterprises.

Ryu Seong-seon, head of SK E&S ESG (Environment, Social, Governance) Division, stated, “We will continue to actively share the company’s resources and infrastructure to create cases where large and small-medium enterprises grow together.”

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