SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won met To Lam, general secretary of Vietnam's Communist Party in Washington to discuss cooperation in the energy and industrial sectors.
According to a LinkedIn post by consulting firm The Asia Group on Thursday, the meeting took place on Feb. 20 during a TAG-hosted event in Washington. SK Innovation CEO Choo Hyeong-wook and TAG Chairman Kurt Campbell attended the talks.
Chey was visiting Washington to attend the Trans-Pacific Dialogue hosted by the Chey Institute for Advanced Studies. His meeting with Lam was arranged by TAG, while the Vietnamese leader was in the US for the launch of the Gaza Peace Committee, according to industry sources.
During the meeting, Lam reaffirmed his vision for deeper bilateral cooperation and welcomed continued foreign investment in key strategic sectors, TAG said.
The meeting marked the first between Chey and Lam since SK Innovation was selected as the final developer for an LNG power project in Vietnam's Nghe An Province.
Earlier this month, SK Innovation said it had won a $2.3 billion project to build a 1,500-megawatt gas-fired power plant, along with an LNG terminal and dedicated port, through a consortium with PV Power, a unit of state-run PetroVietnam and Vietnam-based NASU.
SK Group is seeking to deepen ties with Vietnam, viewing the country as a strategic partner in its push to bolster energy security.
Industry observers say SK's LNG and power investment in Vietnam could also support longer-term energy diversification strategies, potentially aligning with South Korea's growing electricity demand.
That backdrop is particularly relevant as SK hynix expands semiconductor capacity in Yongin, where power demand from chip plants and data centers continues to rise.
herim@heraldcorp.com
