Hyosung goes greener with $836 million green hydrogen project

Hyosung Group is stepping up efforts to turn into an eco-friendly business, announcing huge investment plans on hydrogen and renewable energy projects amid an industry-wide push for a carbon-free economy.

The South Korean textile and chemicals conglomerate said on Monday it is investing 1 trillion won ($836 million) to build green hydrogen production facilities in Sinan, a southwestern port county of South Jeolla Province.

Hyosung Group Chairman Cho Hyun-joon and Kim Yung-rok, governor of the province, have signed a memorandum of understanding on the project, it said.

With the investment, Hyosung plans to produce 200,000 tons a year of green hydrogen and create a total of 300,000 jobs by 2031. For this, the group said it will build a 10-megawatt water electrolysis facility, the single largest plant in Korea, by the end of this year.

Green hydrogen refers to hydrogen produced from water or ammonia, using renewable energy sources such as wind power, without emitting carbon dioxide.

Last year, Hyosung Heavy Industries Corp. said it joined hands with global industrial gas supplier Linde plc to establish the world's largest liquid hydrogen plant via two joint ventures to expand its presence in the hydrogen energy market.

Hyosung said on Monday it will also build nine liquid hydrogen charging stations in South Jeolla Province.

The green hydrogen produced at its Sinan facilities will mostly be sent to industrial complexes across the country, including Seoul, Ulsan, Changwon and Busan, as well as exporting to other countries, it said.

WIND POWER, CARBON FIBERS

With big conglomerates betting big on the hydrogen economy, Hyosung Group has been redoubling efforts to raise funds via the sale of non-core assets and the listing of major subsidiaries on the Korean bourse, for new growth drivers, including hydrogen and carbon fiber manufacturing.

Hyosung said on Monday it is also working on a plan to build a wind power generator blade assembly plant in Sinan as part of its project to produce green hydrogen. For this, it is looking to set up a joint venture with one of the world’s top three wind power turbine makers.

The conglomerate said it may enter into the power grid construction business to create synergy with its renewable energy projects.

Hyosung’s latest push for hydrogen business follows its announcement in 2019 to invest 1 trillion won to build a carbon fiber plant in North Jeolla province by 2028.

Once completed, the plant will have an annual production capacity of 24,000 tons of carbon fibers, the world’s largest for a single factory.

Hyosung, Korea’s first to develop carbon fibers, has been producing such fibers, which are over 10 times as strong and stiff as steel but much lighter, at its Jeonju plant since 2013.

Carbon fibers are widely used to make fuel tanks for hydrogen vehicles.

“Our goal is to turn South Jeolla Province into South Korea’s mecca for green energy,” said Hyosung Group Chairman Cho.

Write to Jeong-Min Nam at peux@hankyung.com
In-Soo Nam edited this article.