Energy sector appointments
SK Group on Friday named the new leaders of its energy businesses, according to The Korea Herald. The most significant appointment concerns Cheong Seung-il, a president specializing in electric power, who has been proposed as the next CEO of SK Innovation. The group cited the intention to strengthen existing businesses and expand the energy business amid volatile markets as the reason for the choice.
Alongside Cheong, President Kang Dong-soo has been proposed as representative director of SK Innovation and as CEO of refining subsidiary SK Energy. He is tasked with prioritizing cash generation from existing businesses to fund new investments. President Kim Wone-kee, who heads SK Enmove's in-house unit, will also take charge of petrochemical subsidiary SK Geocentric, with the stated goal of improving profitability in higher-value-added chemicals.
SK hynix's technology reorganization
On the semiconductor front, President Ahn Hyun is stepping down as head of development at SK hynix to lead a new organization dedicated to the Americas, headquartered in the United States. The company says the move is intended to strengthen work with major U.S. technology customers and support research and development. Ahn has led the development of memory products for artificial intelligence, including high-bandwidth memory.
Succeeding him as head of development is President Cha Seon-yong, who also retains his role as head of the future technology research institute. President Yoon Poong-young, who has led SK hynix's global growth task force since last July, will head the Corporate Center. For SK hynix, the appointments take effect on November 1.
Portfolio, finance and regional oversight
The appointments are part of a broader framework: the group says it wants to complete its portfolio restructuring, strengthen its finances and invest in artificial intelligence and advanced technologies. The confirmation of Jang Yong-ho as CEO of SK Inc. also goes in this direction, while Kim Sun-hyuk, head of strategy at SKC, has been promoted to president of the holding company.
SK also gave President Choo Hyeong-wook a new senior role for Southeast Asia, adding to the existing structures for the Americas, China and Japan; the position is to support local research and commercialization in artificial intelligence, green businesses and advanced materials. The group specifies that the appointments were decided by the boards of the subsidiaries and announced Friday morning at an extraordinary meeting of the SUPEX Council, the top coordination body. The actual implementation timeline and financial impact of the choices remain to be verified, aspects that the available material does not detail.
