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Hanwha, Babcock pitch Korea-UK-Canada partnership for $43 bil. submarine deal

Hanwha Ocean and British defense firm Babcock have proposed a trilateral cooperative agreement between Korea, the United Kingdom and Canada to supply patrol submarines for the Royal Canadian Navy. The partnership proposal is the latest effort by the Korean shipbuilder in its ongoing competition with Germany’s TKMS to secure Canada’s order for 12 submarines worth 60 billion Canadian dollars ($43 billion). The deal would mark the largest single contract in Korea’s defense export history if successful. Hanwha Ocean and the Korean government have been mobilizing all possible means and seeking support from other major companies, such as Hyundai Motor and Korean Air, to meet Canadian expectations in various sectors. Officials at Hanwha Ocean said it made the proposal together with Babcock following last week’s meeting on the sidelines of annual bilateral talks between senior defense officials from Korea and the U.K. in London. "The Canadian Patrol Submarine Project (CPSP) is not just about delivering a submarine platform. It is about building long-term industrial capability and skilled

Jan 20, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
Hanwha, Babcock pitch Korea-UK-Canada partnership for $43 bil. submarine deal

Nearly 4 in 10 firms participating in RE100 initiative face difficulties in sourcing renewable power

Nearly 40 percent of South Korean companies participating in the global Renewable Energy 100 percent (RE100) initiative are struggling to source renewable energy due to high costs and limited procurement options, a report showed Tuesday. Out of 183 South Korean firms that have joined the global campaign, 70, or 38.3 percent, said they had difficulty sourcing enough renewable energy to power all of their operations with 100 percent renewable electricity in 2024, according to the report from the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), citing data from the nonprofit Climate Group and the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP). It marked a sharp increase from 39 companies in 2022, representing an 80 percent rise over the two-year period. Cost burdens and a lack of available procurement mechanisms were cited as the main reasons for the difficulty in sourcing renewable power. Compared with other major economies, South Korea's 2024 figure was significantly higher than 20 companies in the United States, 29 in China and 48 in Japan. Based on the findings, the FKI said it has recommended a list of 20 poli

Jan 20, 2026By Yonhap
Nearly 4 in 10 firms participating in RE100 initiative face difficulties in sourcing renewable power

Tesla’s aggressive pricing secures its dominance in Korea’s EV market

Tesla Korea’s aggressive pricing strategy makes its models stand out, with few electric vehicle (EV) rivals matching the U.S. brand’s strong commercial value, according to market watchers. The iconic EV brand demonstrated its market strength in Korea last year. According to data from market tracker CarIsYou, Tesla Korea sold 59,949 EVs in 2025, up 101.5 percent from the previous year, driven by the strong popularity of its price-competitive Model Y SUV. The vehicle was Korea’s top-selling imported model last year, with sales of 50,405 units, up 169.3 percent from a year earlier. Its exceptional growth surprised the market, surpassing sales of Mercedes-Benz Korea’s flagship E-Class sedan, long the country’s best-selling imported car. Tesla is looking to solidify its position in Korea by rolling out a series of aggressive discount campaigns for its most price-competitive models, the Model Y and Model 3. The carmaker’s latest discount on its Model 3 electric sedan brings its price below 40 million won ($27,100) after subsidies. Late last month, the company also implemented a pri

Jan 20, 2026By Lee Min-hyung
Tesla’s aggressive pricing secures its dominance in Korea’s EV market

Korean Air open to playing part in Canadian submarine bid

Korean Air said Monday it is open to supporting Hanwha Ocean’s consortium in its bid to beat Germany’s TKMS for Canada’s order of 12 patrol submarines worth 60 billion Canadian dollars ($43 billion). The deal would mark the largest single contract in Korea’s defense export history if successful. Along with Hyundai Motor, which has already received Ottawa’s request to invest in Canada’s car industry in exchange for the massive submarine deal, Korean Air has been mentioned as one of the companies expected to join senior government officials and Hanwha executives on their planned visit to Canada later this month. “We are considering ways our company can contribute to the project,” a Korean Air official said. The airline’s willingness to support the Korean shipbuilder contrasts sharply with Volkswagen’s stance. The German carmaker denied any role in the bid despite Ottawa’s request for additional auto investments, saying last week it has no involvement in the ongoing competition, no cooperation with TKMS and no intention to help the German shipbuilder win the contract.

Jan 19, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
Korean Air open to playing part in Canadian submarine bid

HD Hyundai’s Gunsan dockyard drawn into election debate ahead of June 3 polls

HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) is under growing pressure to resume full-scale operations at its dockyard in Gunsan, North Jeolla Province, as politicians are ramping up efforts to win votes ahead of the June 3 local elections. Since 2017, HD HHI has not built any new ships at the Gunsan dockyard. After reopening in 2023, the facility has only produced shipbuilding blocks shipped to Ulsan. Despite the dockyard’s private ownership, some politicians have urged the shipbuilder to sell the facility if it does not plan to resume full-scale operations. Rep. Lee Won-taeg of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), who represents Gunsan, Gimje and Buan County, met with Prime Minister Kim Min-seok on Jan. 8 to ask for the central government’s intervention. According to the lawmaker, the prime minister showed keen interest in the issue and promised to review the proposal. “I told him the government should consider selling the dockyard if necessary, although resuming full-scale operations is the best option,” Lee said. Running for the governorship of North Jeolla Province, Lee has been e

Jan 19, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
HD Hyundai’s Gunsan dockyard drawn into election debate ahead of June 3 polls

SK Bioscience opens Korea’s largest vaccine R&D center in Incheon

SK Bioscience on Monday completed its relocation to its new headquarters in Incheon, as the company seeks to transform its Songdo base from a manufacturing-centered site into an advanced research hub. The company said operations have begun at its Research & Process Development Center in Songdo, Incheon. SK Bioscience invested 377.2 billion won ($256 million) in the facility, which enables vaccine research, process development and quality analysis to be conducted within a single, integrated development flow. SK Bioscience said the center is the largest facility in Korea dedicated to vaccine research, housing specialized laboratories for next-generation vaccine platforms, including messenger RNA, recombinant protein and viral vector technologies. At the center, the company plans to strengthen its existing portfolio, including influenza and pneumococcal vaccines, while expanding its vaccine platforms. It also aims to pursue mid- to long-term strategies, such as expanding global joint projects with international organizations including the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, th

Jan 19, 2026By Nam Hyun-woo
SK Bioscience opens Korea’s largest vaccine R&D center in Incheon

GS to offer self-developed AI safety agent free of charge to SMEs

GS Group is offering its self-developed artificial intelligence (AI)-powered safety management agent, AI Risk Assessment (AIR), to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) free of charge. Through the initiative, the company aims to share its field-driven AI transformation experience and expertise with smaller workplaces that have been slower to adopt AI, in a bid to raise safety standards across industries. “AIR is an AI agent developed based on real on-site needs identified by field staff themselves,” a GS Group official said. “Through this initiative, we hope SMEs can experience the benefits of AI-driven safety management firsthand and ... meaningfully help close safety gaps across worksites.” “GS will continue to enhance Korea’s industrial competitiveness and safety standards through its accumulated AX experience and expertise,” the official added. GS Power, a subsidiary of GS Group, first introduced AIR — an agent that integrates AI into job risk assessments — to improve both efficiency and quality in the process, drawing attention as a model case in industrial saf

Jan 19, 2026By Lee Gyu-lee
GS to offer self-developed AI safety agent free of charge to SMEs

Imported carmakers face dilemma over soaring dollar

Most imported auto brands operating in Korea face a growing dilemma over whether to raise vehicle prices as the U.S. dollar continues to appreciate against the Korean won. Foreign brands such as Cadillac and Jeep, which rely exclusively on imports for local sales, must pay for their vehicles in U.S. dollars through their local subsidiaries. With the dollar still trading at an alarmingly high level of more than 1,470 won — its highest since the 2008 global financial crisis — such brands are being forced to absorb higher costs when importing key models for the Korean market. They must strike a delicate balance between maintaining profitability and sustaining sales growth — a task made especially difficult by intensifying competition from emerging, price-competitive auto brands, industry officials said. “For sustainable growth in Korea, the key task for the U.S. auto brands is to defend the reasonable sales price range despite the strengthening dollar,” an official from a foreign auto brand said. “The pricing strategy has gotten more important than before amid the rapid rise of

Jan 19, 2026By Lee Min-hyung
Imported carmakers face dilemma over soaring dollar

Balvenie takes hit as 'Culinary Class Wars' chef Im Seong-keun admits to multiple DUIs

Single malt Scotch whisky brand Balvenie has drawn unwanted public attention due to its recent advertisement on the YouTube channel of Im Seong-keun, a chef from Netflix’s “Culinary Class Wars” Season 2, who admitted Sunday to three DUIs over the past decade. Known for his humor, outspoken remarks and quick cooking skills, Im made the admission in a video and a written apology uploaded to his channel. However, a bottle of soju also appeared in the video. Fans were especially angered by the fact that Im had been drinking whisky when filming a Balvenie-sponsored video, which was uploaded just five days before his confession. The chef lost more than 20,000 subscribers within 19 hours after the revelation and subsequently deleted the Balvenie-sponsored video. He had been on the verge of reaching 1 million subscribers thanks to his recent surge in popularity. William Grant & Sons Korea, which sells Balvenie's whiskies in the Korean market, declined to comment. As of Monday morning, a video sponsored by British tableware brand Denby remained on his channel. Denby promoted its products by s

Jan 19, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
Balvenie takes hit as 'Culinary Class Wars' chef Im Seong-keun admits to multiple DUIs

Korean energy industry leaders head to Davos as Trump returns to WEF

Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo and the heads of Korea's leading energy companies are attending this year's World Economic Forum (WEF), amid the absence of the chiefs of Korea's four largest conglomerates — Samsung, SK, Hyundai Motor and LG. During the annual gathering of global policymakers, business leaders and experts in the Swiss town of Davos from Monday to Thursday (local time), the minister will deliver a speech on global trade and urge Merck, Amazon Web Services and Maersk to increase investments in Korea. He will also attend a meeting of trade ministers hosted Thursday on the sidelines by the World Trade Organization. “As a middle-power country that the world is watching, the government will show global leadership and help restore the international economic and trade order that is under pressure from multiple challenges,” Yeo said. Korean business leaders at the forum are expected to address the energy transition and the ongoing supply chain crisis. POSCO Group Chairman Chang In-hwa will reportedly meet leaders in the steel and battery industries. HD Hyundai Chairman Chung Ki-su

Jan 19, 2026By Park Jae-hyuk
Korean energy industry leaders head to Davos as Trump returns to WEF
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