SK Innovation to focus on small reactors, batteries, waste recycling

SK Innovation Co., the refinery and chemicals unit of South Korea’s second-largest conglomerate SK, is accelerating a shift toward eco-friendly practices with its focus on small nuclear reactors, batteries and waste recycling.

At its global forum held in San Jose, California, on Saturday, SK Innovation Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Kim Jun said the company is targeting those three business areas as its future growth drivers.

“We’re building our business portfolio with electrification, waste and raw materials recycling and smaller reactors at its center,” he said at the forum.

The chief executive said the company is particularly interested in small-sized nuclear power reactors, called small modular reactors (SMRs).

Last month, the company and SK Inc., the group’s holding company, signed an initial agreement with TerraPower, a US venture firm founded by billionaire Bill Gates, to tap SMR business opportunities.

SMRs, designed to produce less than 500 megawatts-electric, are regarded as a key next-generation energy source due to their lower investment costs and fewer carbon emissions than existing large nuclear power plants. SMRs are also safer as they can be cooled without complicated safety devices.

KEEN INTEREST IN SMRs

SK Group has been paying attention to SMRs after the conglomerate last year unveiled a goal of contributing to a 1% cut in global carbon reduction targets by 2030.

SK On Co., the electric vehicle battery unit of SK Innovation, is also set to expand its production capacity with US partners, including Ford Motor Co., the CEO said.

SK Group, Korea’s second-largest conglomerate after Samsung, said in late May that it will invest 247 trillion won ($195 billion) in key growth sectors such as semiconductors, batteries and biotechnology over the next five years.

Of the total, some 67.4 trillion won will go into its green energy business, including electric vehicle batteries, it said.

Write to Kyung-Min Kang at Kkm1026@hankyung.com
In-Soo Nam edited this article.