SK Innovation (096770) has launched a $2.3 billion (approximately 3.3 trillion won) mega liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in partnership with a Vietnamese state-owned power company and local partners, moving to build an advanced industrial ecosystem in the country.
SK Innovation said Wednesday that a consortium it formed with Vietnamese state-owned power company PV Power and others held a "Quynh Lap LNG Project Execution Announcement and Technical Infrastructure Groundbreaking Ceremony" in the Tan Mai area of Nghe An Province, Vietnam, on Tuesday.
The Quynh Lap LNG Project is a large-scale energy initiative to build a 1.5-gigawatt LNG combined-cycle power plant and an LNG terminal in the Quynh Lap district of Nghe An Province, located approximately 220 kilometers south of Hanoi. The project targets the commencement of commercial operations in December 2030.
The project carries significance beyond simple power generation, as it exports SK Group's "Specialized Energy-Industry Cluster (SEIC)" model to support Vietnam's industrial upgrade. The core concept is to supply electricity produced at the power plant to nearby advanced industrial complexes and apply a "Korean-style AI full-stack" value chain, including the construction of AI data centers.
SK Group Chairman Tae-won Choi and other executives laid the groundwork for winning the project by presenting this vision in multiple meetings with Vietnam's top leadership. SK Innovation plans to use the Quynh Lap project as a stepping stone to emerge as a power company with large-scale generation capacity in Vietnam. The company further aims to grow into a global electricity provider by combining next-generation solutions such as LNG, energy storage systems (ESS), renewable energy, and small modular reactors (SMR), based on continued cooperation with the local government and partner companies.
The groundbreaking ceremony was attended by approximately 300 people, including SK Innovation CEO Choo Hyeong-uk, Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Le Tien Chau, other senior central and local government officials, and partner company representatives.
Vo Trong Hai, Chairman of the Nghe An Provincial People's Committee, expressed his commitment to cooperation in his commemorative address, saying, "This project is important not only for the Nghe An Provincial government but also for the Vietnamese government's energy strategy," and adding, "We will do our best to support meeting the commercial operation timeline set by the central government."
CEO Choo also emphasized in his congratulatory address, "This groundbreaking is a cornerstone for resolving Vietnam's power shortage and building an advanced industrial ecosystem, as well as a historic first step toward the successful completion of the Quynh Lap project." He added, "We will work closely with our partners so that this project, which will become a key base for Vietnam's energy security, can achieve commercial operation in 2030."
