Economy

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  S. Korea launches project to establish demonstration base for materials used in extreme environment SEOUL -- In a bid to secure technology sovereignty and reduce a technology gap with leading countries, South Korea embarked on a costly national project to establish a one-stop demonstration and research base for the development of materials and manufacturing techniques for use in extreme and harsh environments. The six-year project that requires the injection of 309.6 billion won ($231 million) from 2023 is aimed at securing original core technologies by creating a foundation for e 2022-08-22
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  ​Atomy makes $10 mln donation to Compassion Korea to help children suffering from earthquake and war SEOUL -- South Korea's direct selling company Atomy has become a strong supporter of children around the world by donating a total of 14 billion won ($10.46 million) to Compassion Korea, the South Korean branch of international non-profit organization Compassion. A total of 30 billion won has been donated to the non-profit organization since 2021. The donation will be used for children in Thailand, the Philippines, Colombia, Brazil, Indonesia and Mexico where Atomy has already 2022-08-22
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  SK ecoplant ties up with China's GDS to pioneer fuel cell data center market in Southeast Asia SEOUL -- SK ecoplant, an environmental and energy solution provider affiliated with South Korea's SK Group, joined hands with China's top data center provider GDS to pioneer a market for the establishment of data centers applied with an eco-friendly power supply solution based on fuel cells in Southeast Asia. Under a collaboration agreement, SK ecoplant said it would provide eco-friendly power supply solutions including the supply of fuel cells and engineering, procurement 2022-08-22
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  Cosmax develop bio-nano emulsion capable of making pure natural cosmetics SEOUL -- Cosmax, a cosmetics original development manufacturer in South Korea, has developed a bio-nano emulsion that can make pure natural cosmetics, using a new microorganism found in the skin of young women instead of chemical surfactants. It would open the era of cosmetics manufacturing only with natural processes and ingredients. Emulsifiers are an indispensable ingredient in cosmetics production. Surfactants are mainly used in chemical emulsifiers that make emulsions in whi 2022-08-22
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  KEPCO partners with LS Electric to develop remote monitoring service for power facilities SEOUL -- South Korea's state power company will develop a remote monitoring technology that predicts the risk of home appliance overload by analyzing data collected from power facilities. Power usage has significantly increased due to weather anomalies and the adoption of new appliances such as dryers, dishwashers and air cleaners. According to data cited by Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO), the number of home appliance items increased from 15 in 2000 to 22 in 2021. More hig 2022-08-19
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  UNIST team works out ethanol-based solution for dense and uniform perovskite thin film SEOUL -- Toxic solvents were seen as an obstacle to the commercialization and mass production of next-generation perovskite solar cells that enable ultrathin films to absorb the complete visible solar spectrum, leading to the creation of low-cost, efficient, thin and flexible modules. A perovskite solar cell includes a perovskite structured compound as the light-harvesting active layer. The use of non-toxic or less-toxic solvents is essential, but halide perovskites are generally n 2022-08-19
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  SK E&S works with electricity supplier to use green hydrogen and ammonia produced for mixed combustion SEOUL -- SK E&S, an energy company affiliated with South Korea's SK Group, joined hands with a domestic public electricity supplier, to use green hydrogen and ammonia produced at home and abroad for mixed combustion to generate electricity. Ammonia is seen as an ideal resource to establish an eco-friendly hydrogen fuel cell-based infrastructure. Green hydrogen can be produced through electrolysis to split water and release only hydrogen and oxygen. Korea South-East Powe 2022-08-18
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  SK ecoplant works on wastewater treatment with electrochemical oxidation SEOUL -- SK ecoplant, a major waste management company affiliated with South Korea's SK Group, tied up with a domestic wastewater treatment company to demonstrate and commercialize electrochemical oxidation facilities using boron-doped diamond electrodes for the treatment of high-concentration wastewater that is difficult to decompose with microorganisms. Electrochemical wastewater treatment has been in the spotlight for a long time due to its excellent pollutant removal effic 2022-08-18
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  SK Group acquires management rights of U.S. circuit breaker company Atom Power SEOUL -- South Korea's SK Group acquired management rights of Atom Power, a U.S. developer of solid-state digital circuit breakers, in a $150 million deal to promote an energy solution business and electric vehicle mobility services at home and abroad. The deal involving SK Inc., an investment-oriented holding company, and SK energy was signed in Seoul on August 18. Atom Power's solid-state breaker concept replaces traditional moving parts of an electromechanical cir 2022-08-18
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  CJ Cheiljedang's U.S. subsidies integrated into unified entity to promote 'K-food' SEOUL -- CJ Cheiljedang, a key subsidiary of South Korea's food and entertainment conglomerate CJ Group, will integrate two U.S. subsidies including Schwan's Company, a major food processing company, into a unified entity as part of efforts to become a top ready-to-eat Asian food provider in the American market. In early 2019, Cheiljedang, the world's largest producer of an amino acid used as additives for animal feed and food additives, acquired Schwan's for $1.85 b 2022-08-17
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  Kolon recreates used disposable face masks into clothes hangers SEOUL -- In a bid to reduce carbon emissions and microbeads, South Korea's Kolon Group has launched an in-house campaign to recycle disposable face masks into cloth hangers. The campaign began in October 2021, encouraging employees to separate disposable masks from straps and other unnecessary parts for recycling. Used face masks were collected at group business sites and recycled into polypropylene (PP) pellets to produce 29,000 hangers at Kolon FnC, a fashion and lifestyle wi 2022-08-17
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  KT ties up with LG Electronics to upgrade service robot solutions SEOUL -- South Korea's top telecom company KT joined forces with LG Electronics to develop new service robots and upgrade robot solutions. KT's communication infrastructure will be combined with LG's robot manufacturing capabilities to create cooperative platforms. KT said it would quickly spread various service robots owned by LG Electronics into customer life and cooperate in developing new robots. "We hope that service robots will approach customers' daily l 2022-08-17
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  ​SK Chemicals develops green artificial leather using biomaterial SEOUL -- SK Chemicals, a unit of South Korea's SK Group, has developed eco-friendly synthetic leather in collaboration with Kima, a domestic green leather provider, using "Ecotrion," a new material named PO3G (Polyoxytrimethylene Glycol) that reduces greenhouse gas emissions and offers long durability. Ecotrion is a polymer derived from biological raw materials using fermented corn. In May 2022, SK Chemicals established a PO3G production line to meet growing demands f 2022-08-16
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  LG Chem and ADM to build joint ventures in Illinois for bioplastic material production SEOUL -- Archer Daniels Midland, a major American grain processing company, set up two joint ventures with LG Chem, a chemical unit of South Korea's LG Group, for the production of corn-based raw materials for bioplastics that produce fewer greenhouse gases and can be naturally degraded through microorganisms. The production base will be located in Decatur, Illinois. "GreenWise Lactic," the first joint venture of ADM and LG Chem, will produce up to 150,000 tons of lact 2022-08-16
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  SK Group makes $250 million equity investment in U.S. reactor developer TerraPower SEOUL -- South Korea's SK Group has made a $250 million equity investment in TerraPower, an American nuclear reactor design and development engineering company founded by Bill Gates, as part of efforts to achieve "Net Zero" which means cutting greenhouse gas emissions to as close to zero as possible. SK Group and TerraPower have pushed for cooperation in the development and commercialization of next-generation small modular reactors (SMRs) that can address the limita 2022-08-16
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  S. Korean herbicide makes foray into Malaysia targeting oil palm farms SEOUL -- Widex, a weed-killer product developed by Farm Hannong, a herbicide and fertilizer company in South Korea, has been registered as a herbicide product in Malaysia. The Southeast Asian country is the world's second-largest palm oil producer Widex will be used to control weeds without causing any damage to humans and animals. Widex contains 70 percent of Terrad'or, herbicide material used to inhibit chlorophyll formation in weeds and generates active oxygen to destroy 2022-08-09
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  POSCO works with Britain's Primetals to design test furnace for eco-friendly steelmaking SEOUL -- South Korea's steel group POSCO tied up with Primetals, a London-based plant construction company, to design and build a test facility for eco-friendly steel production using hydrogen. POSCO's method called "HyREX" uses 100 percent of hydrogen and generates no carbon. HyREX is more cost-efficient than the method adopted by European steelmakers that put iron ore processed in the form of beads and add heated hydrogen from the bottom. As hydrogen and oxygen 2022-08-04
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  Constru's computer vision technology used for DL E&C's AI field management solution SEOUL -- In cooperation with Constru, a computer vision and AI company in Israel, DL E&C, a builder in South Korea, has introduced a field management solution using AI-based computer vision technology and 360-degree cameras to improve the quality of construction sites and maximize the efficiency of process status management. Constru's computer vision technology offers verifiably accurate project status for early defect detection and optimized scheduling. DL E&C would app 2022-08-04
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  GS Caltex partners with Nestle to upcycle plastic coffee capsules into composite resins SEOUL -- GS Caltex, a major refiner in South Korea, partnered with Swiss multinational food and drink giant Nestle to create eco-friendly composite resins by upcycling plastic coffee capsules. Upcycled resins can be used as raw materials for various products such as automotive interior and exterior parts and home appliances. As part of a project to reduce carbon emissions, GS Caltex will process and produce plastic capsules sold by Dolce Gusto, a coffee capsule brand owned by Nestl 2022-08-04
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  Overseas sales of homemade craft beer from S. Korea up due to growing popularity SEOUL -- The operator of South Korea's convenience store franchise GS25 jacked up its sales target abroad with homemade craft beer thanks to their rising popularity. GS25's beer is now available in 13 countries including Germany, France, Switzerland and Australia. According to the Korea Craft Brewers Association, the domestic craft beer market was valued at 118 billion won ($90 million) in 2020, up 47.5 percent from a year earlier. Exports of GS Retail's beer soared fro 2022-08-03