Hanwha Defense on Tuesday received a record score on a government productivity test, becoming the first company in South Korea to attain level 8 out of 10. According to the Korean defense company, it scored 722.6 points on the Productivity Management System test conducted by the Industry Ministry and the Korea Productivity Center, getting level 8 in six of the seven categories: leadership; innovation; customers; workforce; process; and measurement, analysis and knowledge management. Level

One life mission for automakers is to find electric vehicle batteries that are cheap, yet powerful enough to offer a long range, as they account for more than 40 percent of the total cost of a vehicle’s parts. Though the two goals may sound incompatible, theoretically it’s possible. Lithium-ion batteries consist of four key components: cathodes, anodes, electrolytes and separators. The cathode is what determines a battery’s energy capacity. In theory, when battery maker

South Korea’s public pension fund National Pension Service unloaded its 0.6 percent stake in domestic game company NCSoft to acquire a 0.28 percent stake of nation’s top portal operator Naver, government data showed Thursday. According to regulatory filings, NPS sold off 54,438 shares of NCSoft on Tuesday and bought 452,938 shares of Naver on the same day. As a result, NPS’s stake in NCSoft fell to 11.82 percent from 11.22 percent while its stake in Naver rose to 12.84 pe

Hanwha Energy said Thursday it has won a solar power plant deal with 50 megawatt capacity in Spain. According to the Hanwha Group affiliate, it has signed a contract with Spanish firm GRS for the construction of the solar power plant in Seville, Spain. The plant will be completed by the end of this year at the earliest. The Las Naranjillas plant, equipped with 121,800 solar modules, is expected to generate electricity enough for 13,997 households and reduce 51,977 metric tons of carbon dio

The South Korean game industry propelled the nation’s content exports last year, clocking $6.9 billion, more than 10 times that of the music industry’s $640 million, according to a report released by the Ministry of Culture and Korea Creative Content Agency on Tuesday. The report noted that the Korean game industry’s exports grew 8.9 percent on-year last year, commanding 67.2 percent of the nation’s total content exports of $10.3 billion and topping 10 other industries.

Netmarble on Wednesday launched the three-inning mobile baseball game Magumagu 2020 on Google Play and Apple’s App Store, targeting local baseball fans staying home due to concerns over the coronavirus outbreak. According to the Korean game publisher, Magumagu 2020 -- a mobile version of the company’s 15-year-old PC game Magumagu -- consists of only three innings and takes about 10 minutes per game, offering swift gameplay for mobile users. The launch came at a time when the COVI

Korea Aerospace Industries said Wednesday it plans to roll out the first prototype of its next-generation KF-X fighter jet next April and commence test flights in 2022. “KAI will roll out the first KF-X prototype by April next year. After the first prototype, the remaining five prototypes will come out one after another within the same year. Test flights are scheduled in 2022,” a KAI official said. Of the six prototypes, one will be delivered to Indonesia, co-developer of KF-X p

NCSoft continued to perform strong at the stock market, briefly entering the top 10 market capitalization list on Monday, nudging top automaker Hyundai Motor. Hyundai Motor managed to recover its 10th place as of Tuesday, though the gap between NCSoft remained at 76.1 billion won ($63.6 million). NCSoft is the only South Korean game company to have breached the 20-trillion-won mark in market valuation. The game company’s market cap reached 21.8 trillion won at the closing bell on the

Hyundai Motor Group Executive Vice Chairman Chung Euisun on Tuesday met SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won at SK Innovation’s electric vehicle battery plant in Seosan, South Chungcheong Province, to discuss future partnerships and next-generation EV technologies including lithium-metal batteries. Current lithium-ion batteries consist of four key components: cathode, anode, electrolyte and separator. Lithium-metal batteries use metal instead of graphite for anodes, increasing energy density

Hollywood loves sequels because they guarantee success. In this sense, when South Korean game publisher Netmarble said it would launch a mobile version of StoneAge, expectations were running high. StoneAge was a popular PC game that was serviced between 2003 and 2015 in Korea where users could collect and tame dinosaur pets. However, not all sequels succeed, as witnessed by X-Men: Dark Phoenix and Men in Black: International. Unfortunately, StoneAge World is one of them. More often than not

LG Chem will neutralize its net carbon emissions increase to make it zero by 2050, according to its “Carbon-neutral Growth 2050” initiative unveiled Monday.　 Carbon-neutral growth refers to reducing net emissions by the amount caused by business growth, making the total sum zero. According to the South Korean chemical company, it will cut 30 million metric tons of carbon emissions by 2050 from the projected 40 million tons, offsetting carbon emissions to the current level of 10 m

Korea Electric Power Corp. said Monday it has launched a non-face-to-face export exhibition to introduce electrical equipment and materials manufactured by small and medium-sized enterprises hit by the coronavirus outbreak. According to the state-run utility, the online exhibition “Electric Power Equipment” showcases 190 electrical equipment and materials made by 61 SMEs who are members of Kepco Trusted Partners or investors of Kepco’s Energy Valley project. The exhibition

Hyundai Motor Group Executive Vice Chairman Chung Euisun and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won are expected to meet next week to discuss further cooperation in the electric vehicle battery business, according to industry sources Sunday. The two leaders are likely to meet on Monday or Tuesday at SK Innovation’s EV battery plant in Seosan, South Chungcheong Province, to talk future EV battery partnerships, the sources said. Previously, Chung met with LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo at LG Ch

South Korea’s leading duty-free operators are considering an exit from Incheon International Airport as the number of international passengers plunged 97.8 percent on-year in the second quarter. According to Korea Civil Aviation Association Sunday, South Korea’s nine airlines witnessed international flight passengers plummet to 328,345 from 15.2 million people, a 97.8 percent decline on-year, in the second quarter. Korean Air saw a drop of 96.2 percent to 190,458 from 5 million

It’s not everyday that one feels attracted to a refrigerator, but Samsung’s new fridge is too beautiful to call it just a machine. Samsung Electronics on Thursday invited reporters to a studio in Seongsu-dong, eastern Seoul, to showcase its premium “New Chef Collection” refrigerator amid the COVID-19 outbreak. Inside the dimly-lit studio stood the $10,000 refrigerator with a chic metallic design, which immediately defied the monotonous and boring look of a typic

South Korean battery maker Samsung SDI on Wednesday celebrated its 50th anniversary at its headquarters in Giheung, Gyeonggi Province, pledging to lead the next half-century with a “supergap” initiative. The supergap initiative is a strategy led by Lee Jae-yong, vice chairman of Samsung Electronics and de facto leader of Samsung Group, to widen its technology gap with competitors. “Samsung SDI must secure supergap technology that can offer the highest level of quality and

SK Energy, an affiliate of SK Innovation, said Wednesday it will deliver free gasoline coupons worth 100,000 won ($83) to thousands of front-line fighters in the battle against the coronavirus outbreak. According to SK Energy, the giveaway is to be held through July 22, where participants can access the lists of heroes posted on www.sk-oilro.co.kr and choose those they would like to support. Then, SK Energy will deliver the free gas coupons to each of the selected candidates. Candidates inc

Despite an export crunch, South Korean defense firms are powering through the coronavirus outbreak with the help of domestic contracts. According to Korea Aerospace Industries Tuesday, South Korea’s sole aircraft manufacturer signed a 688 billion-won ($570 million) deal with the Defense Acquisition Program Administration to supply 20 TA-50 aircraft to Korean Air Force by 2024. The TA-50 is a lead-in fighter trainer that was developed by adding a weapons system and a radar to KAI&rsquo

Daewoo Engineering & Construction is slated to start selling apartment units of Giheung Prugio Forepiece in July, offering vicinity to capital Seoul and a peaceful life next to a park. According to Daewoo E&C Tuesday, Giheung Prugio Forepiece will offer a total of 677 households ranging from 59-84 square meters nestled right next to a 59,828-square-meter park in Giheung, Gyeonggi Province, just one bus stop away from Gangnam. When Yongin Station of GTX Line A opens in 2023, it will

South Korea’s brightest IT minds are gathering to Pangyo Techno Valley -- a tech hub modeled after Silicon Valley in the US -- not only because of its vicinity to Seoul but also because of its culture that seemingly respects work-life balance, something rare among traditional big companies. The phenomenon is attributed to the rise of IT powerhouses that have nestled in Pangyo, as well as the changing perception of success among the younger generation, industry watchers say. Working long