SK Group, South Korea’s second-largest conglomerate, has named J.J. (Jeong Joon) Yu its first Head of U.S. Corporate and Government Affairs as SK companies prepare for significant investments and expansions in their American businesses.
Also Read: Kioxia to Complete Acquisition of Chubu Toshiba Engineering
In his new role, Yu will serve as a liaison across SK companies with the U.S. business community and government officials. He will continue to serve as an SK Group Vice Chairman and CEO of SK E&S, a major SK energy company with significant investments in the U.S.
The appointment comes as SK companies increase their presence around the world and in the U.S., driven by a mission to build businesses that have a positive impact on the environment and society. SK companies have more than $13 billion in U.S. assets with plans to invest an additional $30 billion by the end of 2025. Over that same period, SK companies are expected to grow from a combined 4,000 U.S. employees today to 20,000 employees.
The U.S. expansion and investments will largely be focused on clean energy and technology, including batteries for electric vehicles, charging infrastructure for electric vehicles, hydrogen energy and energy storage solutions. Semiconductors and life sciences also will be areas of emphasis.
“The challenges facing society today will require even stronger collaborations across businesses and governments around the world,” Yu said. “SK’s increased U.S. investments and partnerships are intended to create new jobs and economic opportunities in local communities as well as new solutions that help address global issues from climate change to health crises.”
SK, which has operated in the U.S. for more than three decades, has a strong base in the U.S. with sites in more than a dozen states and the District of Columbia. SK On, one of the world’s top five makers of batteries for electric vehicles, started production of EV batteries earlier this year at its Georgia site with plans for new manufacturing sites in Kentucky and Tennessee as part of a joint venture with Ford Motor Co.
SK hynix, the world’s top-tier supplier of memory chips, has a U.S. headquarters in San Jose and created late last year a new stand-alone U.S. subsidiary, Solidigm, following the completion of the first stage of an acquisition of Intel’s NAND and SSD business.