“I will no longer be held hostage in the supply chain.”
US President Joe Biden visited the SK Siltron CSS factory in Michigan on November 29 (local time) and said this. It is the first time that President Biden has visited a Korean factory in the United States since he took office in January 2021. It is being analyzed as a move that reaffirmed the desire to revive the US manufacturing industry.
President Biden, who gave a speech that day, said: “The United States developed semiconductor chips and produced 30% of the world’s semiconductors 30 years ago, but now its market share has dropped to 10% as investments have declined and companies have moved factories overseas.” he pointed out.
He said: “SK makes everything from semiconductors to electric vehicle batteries and medicines, but the investment here is in making semiconductors used in everything from smartphones to cars.” he said. “This is a ‘game changer’,” he said, “SK (Choi Tae-won) is a good acquaintance.”
President Biden also mentioned his first face-to-face meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the recent G20 summit. “We talked about supply chain issues,” he said, adding that President Xi expressed dissatisfaction with the US’s recent move to exclude China from the supply chain for key industries such as semiconductors. Furthermore, he said that semiconductor chip manufacturing factories were closed due to Corona 19 and suffered inflation (inflation): “We will build a supply chain and (unlike China) make that supply chain available to everyone around the world. We will no longer be held hostage in the supply chain.”
Furthermore, he expressed his gratitude to SK Group. President Biden said, “I want to thank the CSS leaders at SK Siltron” and said, “They will create a lot of good paying jobs here.”
Before the speech, President Biden visited the factory. After listening to an explanation of the semiconductor manufacturing process from SK Siltron CSS CEO Jianwei Dong, he said, “This is a very good job,” and said, “Thank you all.”
SK Siltron CSS is a company founded in the United States by SK Siltron in 2020 by acquiring DuPont’s wafer division for US$450 million (approximately KRW 601.2 billion). It produces silicon carbide (SiC, silicon carbide) wafers, which are considered a key material for next-generation power semiconductors due to their high energy efficiency. It is considered one of the top three manufacturers of SiC wafers alongside Wolfspeed and Two-Six, US semiconductor companies in the same industry. In March this year, Catherine Tai, head of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), and Yeo Han-goo, the then head of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy, held a ceremony to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
Youngone Trading, 2nd Generation Management Seriously
Seong Rae-eun, the second daughter of President Seong Ki-hak
Promoted to Vice President after 20 years in the company
Seong Rae-eun (44), president of Youngone Trading Holdings, second daughter of Ki-hak Sung, president of Youngone Trading, was promoted to vice president. It is analyzed that Youngone Trading, which will celebrate its 50th birthday in 2024, has fully entered the second generation management.
Youngone Corp. announced on Nov. 29 that it held regular staff appointments where President Seong Rae-eun, the second daughter of President Sung, was promoted to group vice president. Youngone Trading is engaged in the original equipment manufacturing (OEM) industry for global apparel and sporting goods such as The North Face and Lululemon. It has manufacturing subsidiaries in Bangladesh, Vietnam, El Salvador and Ethiopia and is headquartered in a total of 17 countries, including overseas subsidiaries in the United States, Switzerland, Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong, and employs over 90,000 local employees. Youngone Trading Holdings, the holding company, has Youngone Trading, Youngone Outdoor, Scott North Asia, KEPZ and YOH CVC as subsidiaries.
Sung joined Youngone Corporation in 2002 after graduating from Stanford University. He was president of Youngone Trading Holdings in 2016 and president of Youngone Trading in 2020.
“We have established a Venture Capital Enterprise (CVC) in Singapore to actively respond to the rapidly changing industrial environment,” said Vice President Seong. “We are selectively investing in green material and automation technology companies and brands.”
Hyundai Heavy Group builds “next generation electric propulsion vessel” for the first time in Korea.
Ecological and performing ships…
40% reduction in carbon dioxide emissions
Hyundai Heavy Industries Group succeeded in commercializing for the first time in Korea the electric propulsion solution (Hi-EPS) for ships developed with its own technology.
Hyundai Heavy Industries Group recently built and named “ICT Convergence Electric Propelled Smart Ship” equipped with high-performance and environmentally friendly electric propulsion solution in cooperation with Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy, Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology, Ulsan City, and Ulsan Information Industry Promotion Agency, and held a naming ceremony on November 29. The ship’s name is “Ulsan Taehwa”. The city of Ulsan plans to test the ship by the end of December and use it for educational and tourism purposes from next year.
Ulsan Taehwa is a 2,700-ton ship that can operate at a maximum speed of 16 knots (29.6 km) and can accommodate approximately 300 people. The electric propulsion solution installed on the vessel is equipped with a dual-fuel engine that can use both electricity and liquefied natural gas (LNG) as fuel, and an energy storage system (ESS), resulting in high fuel efficiency and low CO2 emissions. Variable motor speed control and energy optimization control system have also been applied.
As a result of two recent sea trials, the vessel reduced carbon dioxide emissions during operation by 40% compared to conventional marine diesel engines and improved fuel efficiency by 6% through optimal engine control. The CO2 reduction is equivalent to the emission of 100 cars. In addition, depending on the operating environment and speed, three modes can be selected and used: zero-emission propulsion by battery only, general navigation powered by engine, and boost using both engine and battery.
According to Straits Research, a global research firm, the global market for electric propelled vessels, which was worth USD 4.9 billion (about KRW 6.54 trillion) last year, is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 11 .24% to reach US$12.78 billion (about KRW 6.54 trillion). 17.7 trillion) by 2030. .
