S. Korea, Qatar sign 1 contract, 11 MOUs worth US$4.6 bln
President Yoon Suk Yeol attends Korea-Qatar business forum held at a hotel in Doha, Qatar, Wednesday (local time). Yonhap
South Korean and Qatari companies and institutions on Wednesday signed one contract and 11 memorandums of understanding (MOU) worth US$4.6 billion on the occasion of President Yoon Suk Yeol's state visit to the Arab country, his office said.
The contract, worth $3.9 billion, was signed between South Korea's HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and Qatar's state-owned petroleum company QatarEnergy for the construction of 17 liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers.
The 11 MOUs were signed in a range of sectors, including smart farming, solar energy, driverless cars, cultural content, medical services and finance.
The LNG carrier contract is the largest ever for South Korea's shipbuilding industry, senior presidential secretary for economic affairs Choi Sang-mok said.
"HD Hyundai Heavy Industries has secured a half-year's worth of work, while our companies' share of the world's LNG carrier orders this year has increased from 74 percent to 81 percent," Choi said.
South Korea's Hanwha Ocean and Samsung Heavy Industries are currently in negotiations with the Qatari side for the construction of some 30 vessels.
Yoon also requested the attention and assistance of Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani for South Korean shipping companies bidding for a contract to operate 40 LNG carriers, Choi said.
Ten of the 11 MOUs were signed during a business forum attended by Yoon, and business and government officials from the two sides.
They included an MOU on solar power development cooperation between Samsung C&T and the Qatar Free Zones Authority, an MOU between SW Mobility and Protocol Capital on cooperation on driverless cars, and an MOU between the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation and Qatar Development Bank on cooperation to boost South Korean firms' competitiveness. (Yonhap)