As Chmn. Kim Kyu-young Takes Office, HS Hyosung Group Shifts in Non-Owner Leadership Regime

Kim Kyu-young, taking office as a professional manager-turned chairman other than the owner of the group. (Photos: Hyosung)

HS Hyosung Group is undergoing changes in its governance structure by appointing Kim Kyu-young, former Hyosung vice chairman, to be a professional manager-turned chairman other than the owner of the group.

The change looks to raise corporate value by building a new government regime that balances ownership and management.

HS Hyosung said Chmn. Kim Kyu-young was inaugurated on April 1.

The appointment of new Chmn. Kim may be construed as an unprecedented practice of appointing a non-owner chairman.

By appointing a professional manager-turned chairman, instead as someone from the ownership group, the group is striving to set up an expertise-oriented decision-making system and establish a transparent system of sound corporate governance.

Chmn. Kim has been with HY Hyosung Group for more than 50 years after he entered Dongyang Nylon, the predecessor of the group, in 1972.

Chmn. Kim, a graduate of Hanyang University Textile Engineering Department, had been directed with spearheading on plant innovation and raising quality competitiveness while holding production positions as an engineer-turned manger.

He had been lauded for upgrading the technology and business competitiveness of products with a global edge, such as spandex and tire cord, while overseeing the group’s technology strategies as textile performance group chief technology officer and the head of Hyosung Technology Research Institute.

Under the leadership of Chmn. Cho Hyun-joon, HS Hyosung Group has been spearheading Korean-made power equipment and system exports.

Hyosung Heavy Industries struck a 142.5 billion won ESS EPC contract in the Tangkam are in Queensland, Australia, on March 10.

The project calls for the building of energy storage systems based on 100MW/200mWh batteries whose commercial operation is scheduled for late 2027.

Hyosung Group Chmn. Cho Hyun-joon and President Woo Tae-hee meet with CEO Blan Black of the Business Council of Australia and other delegates to discuss ways of promoting cooperation last January.

Hyosung Heavy Industries Lands largest-Ever Order in U.S. Power Market

Hyosung Heavy Industries announced on Feb. 10 that it had signed a contract worth approximately 787 billion won to supply power equipment, including 765kV ultra-high-voltage transformers and reactors, to a major US transmission system operator.

This contract represents the largest single project ever secured by a Korean power equipment company in the US market.

Since last year’s signing of a contract to supply the ‘full package’ of power equipment, including 765kV ultra-high-voltage transformers and 800kV ultra-high-voltage circuit breakers, for the first time as a Korean company, Hyosung Heavy Industries has continued to secure large-scale orders in the new year, reaffirming its dominant position in the US 765kV market.

Recent forecasts suggest that the US will see a 25 percent surge in demand for power over the next decade, largely driven by the construction of massive AI data centers and the rapid increase in the adoption of electric vehicles.

To ensure the stable supply of such large-scale power, major US utility companies are rushing to build 765kV transmission networks, which have the advantage of being able to supply massive amounts of electricity over long distances, while dramatically reducing transmission losses compared with conventional 345kV or 500kV networks.

Hyosung Heavy Industries has supplied nearly half of all the 765kV ultra-high-voltage transformers currently installed across the US transmission network.

Notably, since the early 2010s, the company has proven its technological capability and the reliability of its products in the US power market, and now occupies the No. 1 market share in the US 765kV ultra-high-voltage transformer market.

Having already signed a contract for the large-scale supply of 765kV ultra-high-voltage transformers to the US last year, Hyosung Heavy Industries has further cemented its dominant ‘No.1’ position in the US 765kV ultra-high-voltage transformer market with this latest mega-sized order.

Furthermore, Hyosung Heavy Industries has built up an exceptional product lineup consisting of 800kV ultra-high-voltage circuit breakers as well as 765kV transformers.

Going beyond a traditional equipment manufacturer, the company is anticipated to play a crucial role as a ‘Total Solutions Provider’ in the full-scale rollout of the US 765kV transmission network.

The 765kV ultra-high-voltage transformer is a complex piece of power equipment with a high level of design difficulty, requiring high-voltage insulation technology as well as rigorous testing and verification processes.

After establishing its US subsidiary in 2001, Hyosung Heavy Industries became the first Korean company to export a 765kV ultra-high-voltage transformer to the US in 2010.

Since 2020, the company has been operating a new transformer manufacturing plant in Memphis, Tennessee The Memphis plant is currently the only one in the US capable of designing and manufacturing 765kV ultra-high-voltage transformers.

The company has applied the same quality control expertise and technological capabilities as the Changwon Plant, which boasts the world’s best capability to manufacture 765kV transformers, to its Memphis plant, maximizing its local manufacturing capacity in the US.

In addition, the company is enhancing its efficiency by implementing the same standardized system for procurement, design, and production as that used at its Changwon plant.

It is also continuing its efforts to localize human resources by recruiting outstanding talent in collaboration with local technical colleges, and is actively fostering middle managers and executives by operating career development and specialized training programs.