Leading Korean and Japanese Companies Join Forces to Build a Global Energy Value Chain

Hyundai E&C is strengthening its competitiveness to lead the global energy transition through strategic partnerships with leading Japanese companies. On Wednesday, the 13th, Hyundai E&C announced that it had signed an MOU with ITOCHU Corporation, one of Japan’s leading general trading companies, to collaborate on new business initiatives related to the hydrogen energy transition.

The signing ceremony, held at ITOCHU Corporation’s headquarters in Tokyo, was attended by senior executives from both companies, including Lee Han-woo, President and CEO of Hyundai E&C, and Lee Sang-bae, Head of the Plant Business Division, as well as Hiroyuki Tsubai, President of the Machinery Company at ITOCHU Corporation; Eiichiro Higashiyama, General Manager of the Plant, Ship & Aerospace Division; and Masashi Kanai, General Manager of the Urban Environment & Power Infrastructure Division.

This agreement concerns new business initiatives for hydrogen production and supply. ITOCHU Corporation, a global investment and project developer, will oversee the project and handle investments, while Hyundai E&C will manage the plant’s EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction). Once commercialized, this project is expected to facilitate clean hydrogen production, thereby significantly contributing to the achievement of carbon neutrality and the advancement of a hydrogen society.

In particular, given the collaboration between Hyundai E&C, which possesses hydrogen production plant construction capabilities, and ITOCHU Corporation, which holds global expertise in raw material supply - including having ordered the world’s first ammonia bunkering (fuel supply) vessel - significant synergies are projected to emerge in the future.

Founded in 1858, ITOCHU Corporation conducts business across a wide range of fields, including textiles, machinery, metals and minerals, energy and chemicals, real estate, and finance. Hyundai E&C has maintained close cooperative ties with ITOCHU Corporation, jointly carrying out mega projects such as the Sarulla Geothermal Power Plant in Indonesia and Panama Metro Line 3, and signing an MOU last year to identify business opportunities in ▲pumped-storage hydropower ▲data centers ▲ammonia and LNG.

Meanwhile, Hyundai E&C also held relay meetings with Mitsui & Co., one of Japan’s two major general trading companies, and JGC, a leading engineering company, to discuss cooperation measures for ▲large-scale nuclear power plants ▲offshore wind power ▲data centers ▲LNG ▲oil and gas ▲post-war reconstruction projects in the Middle East. Hyundai E&C has previously collaborated with Mitsui & Co. on large-scale projects in the Middle East, including the Shuaiba Power Plant in Kuwait and the Ras Laffan C Independent Water and Power Project (IWPP)in Qatar, and is also working with JGC on projects including the Basrah Refinery in Iraq and the front-end engineering design (FEED) for Papua New Guinea LNG.

A Hyundai E&C official stated, “To secure global leadership in high-value-ad-ded sectors that are drawing worldwide focus - including AI, energy security, carbon neutrality, and post-war reconstruction - a partnership that combines the strengths of both Korea and Japan is essential,” adding, “Hyundai E&C will continue to expand strategic and long-term partnerships with leading companies in Japan and around the world to solidify its leading position across the entire energy value chain, while accelerating the development of sustainable future infrastructure."