In the midst of an industry-wide push for a carbon-free economy, Hyosung Group is ramping up its efforts to become an environmentally responsible company, unveiling massive investment plans in hydrogen and renewable energy projects.
The South Korean textile and chemicals company announced on Monday that it will invest 1 trillion won ($836 million) in Sinan, a southern port county in South Jeolla Province, to establish green hydrogen production facilities.
The project’s chairman, Cho Hyun-joon, and the province’s governor, Kim Yung-rok, have signed a memorandum of agreement, according to the report.
Hyosung expects to produce 200,000 tons of green hydrogen per year and 300,000 employment as a result of the investment by 2031. For this, the company said that by the end of the year, it will construct a 10-megawatt water electrolysis facility, the country’s largest.
Green hydrogen is hydrogen generated without generating carbon dioxide from water or ammonia using renewable energy sources such as wind power.
Hyosung Heavy Industries Corp. said last year that it had formed two joint ventures with global industrial gas provider Linde plc to build the world’s largest liquid hydrogen plant in order to strengthen its foothold in the hydrogen energy industry.
On Monday, Hyosung announced the construction of nine liquid hydrogen charging stations in South Jeolla Province.
Green hydrogen created at its Sinan facilities would mostly be transported to industrial complexes around the nation, including Seoul, Ulsan, Changwon, and Busan, as well as exported to foreign countries, according to the company.
With giant conglomerates betting big on the hydrogen economy, Hyosung Group has been redoubling attempts to acquire capital for new development drivers, such as hydrogen and carbon fiber production, through the sale of non-core assets and the listing of significant subsidiaries on the Korean stock exchange.
As part of its initiative to manufacture green hydrogen, Hyosung announced on Monday that it is working on a proposal to develop a wind power generator blade assembly factory in Sinan. It plans to do so by forming a joint venture with one of the top three wind turbine manufacturers in the world.
To build synergy with its renewable energy initiatives, the company indicated it may enter the power grid construction market.
Hyosung’s recent push into the hydrogen market comes after the company said in 2019 that it will invest 1 trillion won by 2028 to develop a carbon fiber facility in North Jeolla region.
The factory, when finished, will have the world’s single greatest yearly output capacity of 24,000 tons.
Since 2013, Hyosung, Korea’s first to produce carbon fibers, has been making them at its Jeonju factory, which are almost 10 times as strong and rigid as steel but considerably lighter.
Carbon fibers are commonly employed in the manufacture of hydrogen fuel tanks.
“Our vision is to make South Jeolla Province the green energy capital of South Korea,” stated Hyosung Group Chairman Cho.
