AustCham hosts gala dinner

By John Redmond

The Australian Chamber of Commerce in Korea (AustCham) held its second annual Business Awards gala dinner, the social event of the year for the Korean and Australian business communities, at the Grand Hyatt Hotel on Nov. 11. The high-profile event was attended by over 260 VIPs from the Korean and expatriate business communities to celebrate the strong Australia-Korea business partnership.

After praising AustCham for its hard work and initiative in hosting the event and noting that 2011 marks the 50th year of diplomatic relations between Australia and Korea, in his welcoming remarks H.E. Sam Gerovich, Australian ambassador to Korea, said, “Tonight’s business awards demonstrate the strong and vibrant economic relationship between Australia and Korea,” which has reached over AUS$30 billion a year in two-way trade.

In all, three competitive and three special awards were presented to companies for their significant contribution to strengthening the commercial ties between Korea and Australia. “Nine very well-qualified companies were finalists for the three competitive awards,” remarked Jim Lim, chairman of AustCham.

“The judges selected Samsung C&T for Investment of the Year for its role in the Victorian Desalination Project, which aims to produce 150 billion litres of drinking water a year once operation begins by the end of 2012,” Lim announced.

AustCham also awarded KEPCO ― the Korea Electric Power Corporation ― the Chairman’s Award as an outstanding contributor to Australia-Korea Business relations, especially for its leading role as a major importer of, and investor in, Australian resources.

Rounding out the special awards, AustCham’s Year of Friendship Award went to the Galleries Association of Korea for providing numerous Australian artists and galleries an extraordinary opportunity to exhibit in Korea.

In the Best SME category, employment services specialist Ingeus Korea won for assisting over 5,000 Koreans move from dependence to independence in the last two years by helping them to find employment.

Further, Compacks Korea took top honours in Trade Excellence in recognition of over 20 years of service in promoting processed Australian food in the Korean market. These two winners were picked by an independent panel of judges with special expertise in Korea and Australia.