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| GS Group Chairman Huh Tae-soo discusses business with executives at the GS Group Strategy Report meeting in Pocheon, Gyeonggi Province, Sept. 7. Courtesy of GS Group |
By Kim Hyun-bin
GS Group is starting to invest heavily in future growth businesses ranging from solar power, nuclear power and electric vehicles (EVs) to biotechnology, according to industry officials, Monday.
The move comes as GS Group Chairman Huh Tae-soo has been pushing to invest in new businesses with partners for future growth.
GS Group is promoting more than 15 new businesses in diverse fields such as hydrogen and biofuel, plastic recycling, EV charging, battery recycling, small module reactors (SMR) and ammonia development and distribution.
"The recession and economic downturn are providing a better investment environment for GS," Chairman Huh said.
GS Group entered the solar power business recently with Hanwha Solutions and also entered the carbon capture business with seven domestic companies. GS Energy will establish a joint venture with Hanwha Solutions to produce ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), a core material in sheets used for solar modules, at Yeosu Industrial Complex in South Jeolla Province.
H&G Chemical, established by the two companies, plans to produce EVA with an annual target of 300,000 tons beginning in September 2025. EVA sheets are a key material that maintains the performance of solar cells, and global solar component makers are supplying products using this material.
GS Energy will also participate in the development of the Shepard CCS Project, a carbon capture, transportation and storage project between Korea and Malaysia, by signing an agreement with Malaysian Petronas along with SK Energy, SK Earthon, Samsung Engineering, Samsung Heavy Industries, Lotte Chemical and others. This project aims to collect carbon dioxide generated by domestic industrial facilities, place them in a domestic hub and transport them to Malaysia for storage.
GS Energy plans to build and operate power plants around the world by signing an agreement with Nuscale Power of the U.S. Investments in the mobility sector are also actively underway, from EVs to urban air mobility (UAM).
GS Energy, which last year launched G-Connect, an EV-charging station operator, joined hands with LG Electronics to acquire a 100 percent stake in Apple Mango to expand its EV-charging business.
GS Caltex is also participating in the UAM business by forming a consortium with Kakao Mobility, LG Uplus, Jeju Air, Pablo Air and Vertical Aerospace. New businesses linked with existing businesses such as bio and plastic recycling are also continuing to expand. GS Caltex and POSCO International are jointly promoting an eco-friendly bio business based on palm oil.
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