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Park Jae-hyuk

Korea Times Business Reporter

Park Jae-hyuk is a seasoned journalist who has provided comprehensive coverage of South Korea's corporate dynamics, economic policies, industry challenges and the global positioning of Korean companies. Based on the articles he has written since joining The Korea Times in 2016, his investigative approach has helped readers understand corporate governance, economic trends and business strategies shaping South Korea’s economy.

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Hanwha wins 1st US Navy subcontract for next-generation logistics ship

Hanwha Defense USA and Hanwha Philly Shipyard have secured their first project with the U.S. Navy as subcontractors to Vard Marine US for the Next Generation Logistics Ship (NGLS) program, also known as the light replenishment oiler (T-AOL). The contract marks the first U.S. Navy award to Hanwha Defense USA since the company’s establishment and Hanwha Group’s acquisition of the Philly Shipyard. Since December 2024, Hanwha has invested more than $200 million to upgrade the shipyard’s workforce, capabilities and capacity. Under the deal, Hanwha will partner with VARD to conduct a market survey and carry out concept design and refinement for the new NGLS platform. The company will also support manufacturability, commercial construction practices and the evaluation of production costs. The award includes options for functional design planning and special studies. The NGLS is designed to provide sustained afloat or ashore refueling, resupply and rearm capabilities through a smaller platform using commercially available, non-developmental and proven technologies. “This award represents

Mar 31, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
Hanwha wins 1st US Navy subcontract for next-generation logistics ship
Companies

Korea resumes Russian naphtha imports

Korea resumed importing naphtha from Russia through a legal route Monday, four years after Western sanctions halted the Asian country's purchases of the key petrochemical feedstock from the world's largest nation. According to industry officials, LG Chem succeeded that day in bringing in 27,000 tons of Russian naphtha to Korea, which is expected to be used at one of the company’s naphtha cracking centers (NCCs) in Seosan, South Chungcheong Province. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources also reportedly briefed lawmakers from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea about the resumption during a meeting earlier that day. The volume of the recent Russian naphtha imports is considered large enough for LG Chem’s NCC to operate an additional three to four days. Korean NCCs use an average of 4 million tons of naphtha per month to produce raw materials for petrochemical products such as plastic bags, food packaging and cosmetic containers. The war in Iran has disrupted naphtha shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, leaving Korean petrochemical firms and the government struggling to add

Mar 30, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
Korea resumes Russian naphtha imports
Companies

LG Chem woos shareholders with portfolio overhaul plan

LG Chem said Monday it will bolster its electronic materials business in an effort to double revenue from the segment to 2 trillion won ($1.3 billion) by 2030 from the current 1 trillion won. On the same day, CEO Kim Dong-choon of the company made his first treasury share purchase since taking office last November, disclosing that he bought 336 common shares on Wednesday for about 99.7 million won. The announcements came a day before LG Chem’s regular general shareholders’ meeting, where the company will face a proxy battle with Palliser Capital. The British activist hedge fund has called on the Korean chemical maker to boost shareholder value by selling part of its stake in LG Energy Solution (LGES), its battery manufacturing subsidiary. Under its planned business portfolio restructuring, LG Chem aims to preemptively secure material technologies related to semiconductors, electronic devices and next-generation displays, with a stronger focus on higher value-added businesses. Emphasizing that Kim built his career over three decades in LG Chem’s semiconductor, electronics and advanc

Mar 30, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
LG Chem woos shareholders with portfolio overhaul plan
Companies

Director of Inje's only hospital recognized for decades of service

Kim Jong-won, director of Inje Korea Hospital in Gangwon Province, has been named the first recipient of the TJ Park Heroes Award presented by the POSCO TJ Park Foundation. The award ceremony was held Wednesday at the POSCO Center in Seoul. A graduate of Korea University’s College of Medicine, the 60-year-old orthopedic surgeon chose to work in Inje County rather than in larger cities. His hospital is the county’s only hospital-level medical institution. Under the Korean Medical Service Act, hospitals must have at least 30 beds, while medical institutions with fewer than 30 are classified as clinics. In the remote county with a population of about 30,000, Kim has cared for residents and saved lives for the past 25 years. Despite ongoing challenges in recruiting medical personnel, the hospital operates a 24-hour emergency room. To help financially struggling residents to continue receiving care, the hospital has also reduced costs for treatments not covered by the national health insurance program as much as it can. In addition, its obstetrics and gynecology department recently began acc

Mar 30, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
Director of Inje's only hospital recognized for decades of service
Companies

OCI Holdings secures $125 mil. IFC financing for Malaysian chip expansion

OCI Holdings' Malaysian unit, OCI TerraSus, has secured $125 million in financing from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, to expand its semiconductor-grade polysilicon production in Sarawak, the company said Monday. The deal marks the IFC’s first-ever investment in the largest state of Malaysia and will fund the construction and operation of a new facility under OCI Tokuyama Semiconductor Materials (OTSM), a 50-50 joint venture between OCI TerraSus and Japan’s Tokuyama Corp. Unlike commercial lenders, the IFC requires strict adherence to international environmental, social and governance standards. OCI Holdings said the investment reflects the project’s business viability and the company’s commitment to low-carbon management, human rights and industrial safety. “Securing this investment as the first recipient in Sarawak after meeting the IFC’s rigorous screening standards is a landmark achievement. This partnership serves as international validation of our semiconductor business’s viability and our ESG execution cap

Mar 30, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
OCI Holdings secures $125 mil. IFC financing for Malaysian chip expansion
Companies

Hanwha Solutions faces backlash over abrupt rights offering plan

Hanwha Solutions has drawn mounting criticism from both shareholders and securities analysts after it abruptly announced on Thursday a plan to raise capital by issuing new shares worth 2.4 trillion won ($1.6 billion). While minority shareholders have begun procedures to file petitions with the presidential office and the financial regulator to prevent the expected depreciation of their shares, analysts warned investors against buying the company’s stocks, expressing doubts about whether the proposed rights offering will achieve its intended goals. Under the plan announced just two days after the general shareholders’ meeting, Hanwha Solutions will issue new common shares so that it can use 1.5 trillion won of the proceeds to repay debts. The remaining 900 billion won will go toward strengthening its solar power business, operated by its Qcells division. Because the deal will add 72 million common shares to the 171.89 million outstanding ones, the company’s stock price fell 18.22 percent on the day of the announcement. It inched down another 3.13 percent to 35,650 won Friday. Act, a

Mar 27, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
Hanwha Solutions faces backlash over abrupt rights offering plan
Companies

POSCO donates tactile exhibit to National Museum of Korea

The POSCO 1% Foundation has donated a PosArt-based tactile exhibit to the National Museum of Korea to help visitors with visual impairments and other disabilities better enjoy exhibitions, POSCO Group said Friday. PosArt is the steelmaker’s premium color steel plate that applies high-resolution inkjet printing technology on special steel materials. By layering ink through advanced three-dimensional deposition, it achieves more than four times the image clarity of conventional color-coated steel plates. Among the three types of PosArt-based installations donated is a tactile table that allows visitors to experience major calligraphic works through touch. The table includes braille descriptions placed at accessible heights for visitors with disabilities, while three-dimensional tactile panels reproduce the subtle brush movements of master artists. The feature also allows those without disabilities to explore the aesthetic beauty of traditional art through an expanded, multisensory experience. The other installations include a large scenic wall at the entrance of the reopened Calligraphy a

Mar 27, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
POSCO donates tactile exhibit to National Museum of Korea
Companies

HMM board reshuffle fuels Busan relocation tensions

Tensions are escalating between HMM’s labor union and management after the shipping company succeeded Thursday in reshuffling its board, a move seen as a preliminary step to relocate its headquarters from Seoul to Busan. At a regular general shareholders’ meeting, HMM secured approval to appoint Ahn Yang-soo, former CEO of KDB Life Insurance, and Park Hee-jin, a professor at Pusan National University, as new outside directors. With the approval, HMM’s board now consists of two executive directors and three nonexecutive directors, reducing the total number of members from six to five. One shareholder at the meeting raised concerns about Ahn’s past role as a senior executive at the state-run Korea Development Bank (KDB) and Park’s ties to the southeastern port city. “KDB, once a creditor of HMM, is now its largest shareholder, so the new board member from the bank will likely act as a rubber stamp,” the shareholder said. “Given Park’s background as a scholar based in that region, it will be hard for her to stay neutral on the relocation issue.” Speaking at the meeting as

Mar 26, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
HMM board reshuffle fuels Busan relocation tensions
Companies

HD Hyundai chairman inspects operations in Vietnam

HD Hyundai Chairman Chung Ki-sun of the shipbuilding group visited Vietnam this week to inspect the company's operations in the Southeast Asian country and meet with employees there, the company said Thursday. According to the company, Chung on Tuesday reviewed the construction of a product carrier designed to transport refined petroleum products at HD Hyundai Vietnam Shipbuilding in Khanh Hoa Province, a joint venture between the Korean firm and the Vietnamese government. On Wednesday, the chairman visited HD Hyundai Eco Vina in Quang Ngai Province, formerly Doosan Enerbility’s Vietnamese subsidiary. It marked Chung’s first visit since HD Hyundai acquired the producer of eco-friendly independent tanks and port cranes for Asian customers last December. HD Hyundai said Chung examined the construction of a new tank factory and facilities for producing port cranes and liquefied natural gas plant modules. The shipbuilding group added that he emphasized workplace safety to employees at both operations. “The foundation of business management lies in the field, and I believe that is where

Mar 26, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
HD Hyundai chairman inspects operations in Vietnam
Companies

Hormuz disruption presents hardship rather than benefit for shipping firms

Korean shipping companies say they are suffering heavy losses from rising costs following disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, rather than seeing gains from increased freight rates. Struggling to pass the added costs on to customers, the companies are urging the government to provide financial support and effective policy measures. “Because shipping firms sign contracts before launching voyages, it takes time to reflect higher fuel prices and insurance premiums,” an official from the Korea Shipowners’ Association said Wednesday. “Although they can ask customers to pay surcharges after shipment, small and medium-sized shipping firms find it difficult to make such requests while under the government’s close scrutiny on exporters’ situations.” In earlier stages of the conflict in Iran, the shipping industry was initially regarded as a potential beneficiary from the crisis, as disruptions to sea routes typically drive up freight rates. The Shanghai Containerized Freight Index for the Middle East indeed soared to 3,324 as of Friday, marking a 150.5 percent increase from Feb. 27,

Mar 25, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
Hormuz disruption presents hardship rather than benefit for shipping firms
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