[서울신문] SK becomes the largest shareholder of a US hydrogen energy company

Acquisition of 9.9% stake in Plug Power with SK E&S
The first achievements of the hydrogen business team… Resilience of’ESG management’
A joint venture will be established to target the Asian market

SK announced that it will invest 1.6 trillion won in hydrogen business, which is considered the’next-generation energy’ from the beginning of the new year. This is the first achievement of the’SK Hydrogen Business Promotion Team’, which was formed by gathering personnel from SK affiliates last year, and this is the first time that SK’s hydrogen business has been materialized. SK Group Chairman Choi Tae-won has initiated the’Environmental, Social and Governance’ (ESG) management.

SK and SK E&S announced on the 7th that they will become the largest shareholders with a 9.9% stake by jointly investing a total of 1.6 trillion won (approximately 1.5 billion dollars) each of 800 billion won in US hydrogen energy company’Plug Power’. . Established in 1997, Plug Power is a global company that possesses key technologies related to hydrogen such as vehicle hydrogen fuel cell manufacturing technology, water electrolysis technology that produces hydrogen by supplying power to water, hydrogen charging station technology, and liquefied hydrogen plant technology. It also possesses hydrogen mobility business capabilities such as hydrogen forklifts and hydrogen trucks. It monopolizes the supply of hydrogen forklifts to major US retail companies such as Amazon and Wal-Mart, and recently entered the mid- to large-sized truck market using a hydrogen charging station network. The sales of drones, aircraft, and hydrogen fuel cells for power generation are also expanding to the European market. As of the end of last year, the market capitalization amounted to 16 trillion won.

With this investment, SK, which is becoming the largest shareholder of Plug Power, will establish a joint venture with Plug Power and start targeting the Asian hydrogen market, including Korea. In particular, it is planning to dominate the market by opening a new hydrogen business first in China and Vietnam. In Korea, it has set a goal to build a hydrogen ecosystem that covers production, distribution, and supply with a production capacity of 30,000 tons per year in 2023 and 280,000 tons per year in 2025.

SK E&S is able to increase its value as an eco-friendly energy company that focuses on the hydrogen business along with the existing liquefied natural gas (LNG) business. SK E&S President Hyung-wook Choo, head of SK Hydrogen Business Promotion Division, said, “Because Plug Power is a global market leader in hydrogen technology, this partnership will be able to create social value as well as synergy in the hydrogen business promoted by SK.” .

Reporter Lee Young-jun [email protected]