SK innovation breaks ground on $2.3bn Vietnam LNP project

(SK innovation)

SK innovation Co. said on Tuesday it held a groundbreaking ceremony for the technical infrastructure of a $2.3 billion liquefied natural gas (LNG) power project in Vietnam.

The Quynh Lap LNG project involves constructing a 1.5 gigawatt (GW) LNG combined-cycle thermal power plant and an LNG terminal in Quynh Lap District, Tan Mai, Nghe An Province, about 220 kilometers south of Hanoi.

The project is being developed by a consortium comprising Vietnam’s state-owned Petro Vietnam Power Corp. (PV Power) and Nghe An Sugar LLC (NASU), a subsidiary of Vietnam’s TH Group, with commercial operation targeted for December 2030.

The project will follow the Specialized Energy-Industrial Cluster (SEIC) model, a future industrial ecosystem concept proposed by SK Group to the Vietnamese government.

Under the model, electricity generated by the plant will be supplied to nearby advanced industrial complexes and artificial intelligence (AI) data centers to support industrial upgrading in Vietnam.

SK innovation said SK Group’s top executives have held multiple meetings with Vietnamese government leaders to support the project. It added that SK Chairman Chey Tae-won proposed the direction of the SEIC model and supported Vietnam’s National Innovation Center (NIC), contributing to the groundwork for the project.

About 300 consortium and government representatives attended the ceremony, including SK innovation Chief Executive Officer Choo Hyeong-wook, PV Power Chairman Hoang Van Quang and President Le Nhu Linh, TH Group Chairwoman Thai Thi Huong, and NASU Chief Executive Officer Ngo Van Tu.

Vietnamese central government officials in attendance included Doan Minh Huong, President of the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics, and Deputy Prime Minister Le Tien Chau, along with local officials such as Nghe An Province Party Secretary Nguyen Khac Than and Provincial People’s Committee Chairman Vo Trong Hai.

“The groundbreaking marks a historic first step toward resolving Vietnam’s power shortage and establishing an advanced industrial ecosystem,” Choo said. “We will work with PV Power, NASU, and other partners to achieve commercial operation by 2030.”