Korea, Czech Republic to cooperate in finance, energy and emerging sectors

President Yoon Suk Yeol called for Korea and the Czech Republic to achieve a “nuclear energy renaissance” at a bilateral business forum attended by top executives of both countries Friday.

President Yoon Suk Yeol, third from right, Czech President Petr Pavel, second from right, and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, head of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, third from left, clap alongside other officials and business executives at the Korea-Czech business forum at a hotel in Prague in the Czech Republic on Friday. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

PRAGUE — Korea and the Czech Republic will expand economic cooperation in multiple sectors including finance, energy, healthcare and emerging industries, the two countries announced following President Yoon Suk Yeol’s four-day visit to the Central European nation this week.

The Korea Trade Insurance Corporation said on Sunday that it signed a five-party memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Export-Import Bank of Korea, the Czech Development Bank, the Czech Export Bank and the Czech Export Guarantee and Insurance Corporation in Prague to strengthen financial support and mutual cooperation.

Through this agreement, the institutions will collaborate to identify projects beneficial to both nations and to enhance trade and investment through financial support.

The Czech Republic is not only focusing on nuclear energy but also on bolstering efforts to advance industries such as hydrogen energy and future vehicles, showing interest in collaborating with Korean companies in such realms.

Deputy Prime Minister and Economy and Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok met with Czech Finance Minister Zbynek Stanjura on Friday, marking the first visit by a Korean economic minister to the Czech Ministry. The two ministers agreed to strengthen financial cooperation related to nuclear power plant construction as well as financial support measures for the project’s successful completion.

The Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency also said on Sunday that $5.72 million worth of deals were secured by Korean companies aiming to expand their businesses to the Czech Republic, including small- and mid-sized enterprises.

On Friday, President Yoon Suk Yeol called for Korea and the Czech Republic to achieve a "nuclear energy renaissance" at a bilateral business forum attended by top executives of both countries.

Yoon and Czech President Petr Pavel, following their bilateral summit the previous day, took part in the Korea-Czech business forum, which was co-hosted by the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Czech Chamber of Commerce and attended by some 470 businesspeople, according to Seoul's presidential office.

In a keynote address, Yoon noted that with Team Korea's selection as the preferred bidder for the construction of a new nuclear power plant in the Czech Republic, it was time to move toward becoming "Team Czech-Korea" to achieve a "nuclear energy renaissance" together.

The forum was an occasion for the two sides to sign 14 memorandums of understanding (MOU), setting the direction of cooperation in economic and industrial sectors, the presidential office said.

The event was attended by leaders of Korea's top conglomerates including Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong, Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo. This marks the first time this year that the chiefs of Korea's top four conglomerates accompanied the president on an overseas trip.

Korean business leaders including from right, Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong, Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung and LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo attend a Korea-Czech business forum at a hotel in Prague in the Czech Republic on Friday. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

Yoon's four-day trip to the Central European nation comes on the heels of the Czech government selecting in July a Korean consortium led by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) as the preferred bidder to build two nuclear reactors in Dukovany in an estimated 24 trillion won ($17.3 billion) project.

"We must continue the momentum of cooperation in the nuclear power plant sector throughout various industries," Yoon said at the joint business forum.

He called to institutionally support comprehensive cooperation across industries by signing a Trade and Investment Promotion Framework (TIPF) between the two governments.

Yoon said that the two sides will also discuss major cooperation projects through a supply chain and energy dialogue (SCED) between the two countries, and announced that they will lay the foundation for cooperation in advanced industries such as batteries, future vehicles and hydrogen energy.

He further stressed that aerospace, bio, chemistry and materials, digital technology and energy were identified as promising areas for cooperation between the two countries' research institutes, establishing the "ABCDE" of bilateral science and technology cooperation. He pledged to actively support joint research and personnel exchanges between the two countries to this end.

President Yoon Suk Yeol gives a keynote address at the Korea-Czech business forum in Prague in the Czech Republic on Friday. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

Yoon also emphasized the potential in infrastructure cooperation, noting that Korea's high-speed rail has built a reputation for being "fast and safe," adding that he hopes that Korean companies can contribute to the construction and operation of such high-speed rail in the Czech Republic.

Yoon in his address encouraged the business leaders who have contributed to the development of bilateral relations, noting that the two countries' economic exchanges date back to 1989, when a Korea-Czech economic cooperation council was established, dating back to even before the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1990. He noted that some 35 years later, engineers from the two countries are building Hyundai Motor vehicles in the Czech Republic municipality of Nosovice and exporting them to 74 countries.

He also called to work together to provide humanitarian support to rebuild Ukraine's infrastructure.

The two countries’ business sector likewise expressed hopes that Czech Republic will become a new gateway for Korean companies’ entry into Europe with the latest nuclear power plant deal.

KCCI Chairman Chey called to “continue cooperation in various energy fields” along with the ongoing nuclear power plant project.

He especially highlighted Korea’s hydrogen technology “has endless possibility for cooperation with the Czech Republic,” as a country pursuing the development of a hydrogen economy.

He added advanced industries, such as artificial intelligence (AI), semiconductors and batteries, are other areas in which the two countries can cooperate closely together in.

Jan Rafaj, president of the Confederation of Industry of the Czech Republic, noted that “Korea has become one of the Czech Republic’s most important non-European trading partners,” and that “the Czech Republic is a gateway for Korean companies to enter Europe.”

The Czech Republic is viewed as the country with the best industrial manufacturing base for batteries and automobiles among the Visegrad Group, or V4, comprised of four Central European countries — Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary.

Bilateral trade between Korea and the Czech Republic reached an all-time high of $4.47 billion last year, compared to $3 billion in 2018 and $4 billion in 2021.

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]