Of late Korea’s new and renewable energy sector has been receiving considerable attention, due to the government’s “Green Growth Plan”.

Under the plan, Korea is seeking to increase the share of new and renewable energy in the total energy supply, in order to reduce the nation’s reliance on imported oil (world’s 5th largest importer) and coal (world’s 2nd largest importer), and also reduce the nation’s carbon footprint.

The goal is to increase the share of new and renewable energy from 2.7% in 2009, to 6.09% in 2020, and finally to 11% by 2030.

And According to the Ministry of Environments Waste to Energy Policy,

The government and private sector expect to spend a total KRW 5.63 trillion (approx. U$5bil) to expand a variety of waste to energy facilities by 2013, of which about half will be provided by government subsidies.

For the opportunity to participate in Korea’s growing waste-to-energy market, see the company profile on Kentec Energy, who is currently seeking financial investors and/or strategic partners.

Or for other opportunities in Korea’s green growth industries please contact Invest KOREA on +82-2-3460-7536, or at investment@kotra.or.kr.

Additional resources:

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Combine this with Korea’s first-class technological infrastructure, changing business culture, and government support for telecommuting, in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,  and it is easy to see why global teleconference solutions company Polycom sees high potential for the domestic market.

“The Korean market is still at a growing stage in terms of its share in the global video conferencing market. The Korean market holds a meager 2 percent share,” Country manager of Polycom’s Korea unit, Chun Yoo-jin, said in an interview with The Korea Herald.

Polycom Korea is one of its fastest growing operations with its revenue jumping a whopping 1,300 percent between 2003 and 2009, according to Chun.

In Korea, high-definition video conferencing accounts for 90 percent of the market, whereas the corresponding figure in Europe has not exceeded 50 percent, he said.

Korean corporate bosses also see video conferencing as an attractive option as they favor face-to-face communications, he said.

“There is little resistance for the adoption of video conferencing among Korean management. The management is vigorously introducing video conferencing and embracing a videoconferencing culture,” he said.

The Lee Myung-bak administration has also been pushing for “energy-saving work” such as telework, as part of its green initiative.

“The government has put emphasis on telework to create a flexible and environmentally-friendly work environment. We expect this to give fresh growth momentum to the local video conferencing market,” he said.

(Source: Korea Herald)

For joint venture, or other strategic partnership opportunities with Korean ICT companies please contact Invest KOREA’s Partnership Support Team on +82-2-3460-7536, or email investment@kotra.or.kr.

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Major foreign corporations took part in the survey including Rolls-Royce which hoped for joint development of aircraft engines, Vestas (wind system), Texas Instrument (semi-conductors), Alcatel-Lucent (telecommunications devices), Dow Chemical (materials) and so on.

MKE will invite these overseas firms to participate in one-on-one business meetings with South Korean firms, from June 8th to 10th at Kintex in Ilsan.

As part of this event, the Investment Partnership Support Team is organizing the “Global Corporate Venture Capital Seminar & Partnering” event.

Taking place over two days the event will provide an incredible opportunity for international CVCs to not only learn about what is happening in Korea’s materials industry but also to meet with the major players, and investment seeking SMEs.

“Global Corporate Venture Capital Seminar & Partnering”

When: Tuesday, June 8 – Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Venue: KINTEX, Goyang City, Kyeonggi-do, Korea

Participants:

• Global CVCs (Corporate Venture Capital)
• Leading Korean SMEs
• Local VCs & Financial Service Providers

Host: Ministry of Knowledge Economy (MKE)

Organizers: KOTRA (Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency / KIAT (Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology)

Support for Attending Global CVCs (subject to approval):

• Return Airfare (Economy Class)
• Three nights hotel accommodation
• Speaking fee for presenters (U$500)
• Pre-arranged meetings with Korean companies/VCs based on request

Additionally, running concurrently will be the International Materials & Components Industry Show 2010 (IMAC 2010), see here for more information.

If you would like more information please contact the Investment Partnership Support Team through Brett Moffat, on (+82) 2-3460-7536, or at b.moffat@kotra.or.kr, or through your local Korea Business Center.

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In summary the report states -

The infrastructure industry is emerging as a promising area for growth due to an annual average of $2 trillion expected to be spent worldwide on building infrastructure, over the next twenty years

As emerging countries need to build infrastructure much faster than advanced countries did in the past, they are highly sensitive to costs and prefer the latest in technologies.

To resolve their shortage in financial resources, these countries are adopting diverse business strategies, thus generating opportunities for Korea, a relative latecomer in terms of exports and market entry.

Based on the characteristics of infrastructure markets in emerging countries and Korea’s capabilities, the report lists the following promising areas for growth -

Express trains

• Powerful emerging countries such as China, Brazil and India are enthusiastic about adopting express trains because of their eco-friendliness and lower operational costs compared to other forms of transportation.

Nuclear Power

• Due to its reputation as a clean, inexpensive and stable supply of electricity, emerging countries are actively constructing nuclear reactors, currently accounting for 69% of the world’s nuclear reactors slated for construction.

Water treatment solutions

• Investments by the BRICs in this sector will amount to $7 trillion over the next two decades.

For an investment opportunity in the water treatment sector see a profile on Korean SME - Centennial Technology, or Ecoeye, an environmental consulting firm working in developing countries.

Next-generation mobile telecom businesses

• Which are proving more favorable than fixed-line networks in terms of implementation time and costs.
• Based on the CDMA/WiBro technologies that it has already secured and its advanced operational capabilities, Korea should also secure leadership in next-generation mobile telecommunications and target emerging markets.

For investment opportunities in Korean IT infrastructure companies see Ivy Network (Wireless repeaters), XRONet (Broadband chip-sets), or Shinhan Photonics (Fiber optic equipment).

For the full article posted in the JoongAng Daily see here. Or to see the full report, along with many other interesting reports published by the Samsung Economic Research Institute, sign-up for free at www.seriworld.org.

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“If I look in the next five years, South Korea in one of the five biggest markets in the world for new life and savings products to come through,” Simon Machell (pictured), told Yonhap News last week in a phone interview.

Aviva, the No. 2 life insurer in Britain, operates in South Korea as Woori Aviva Life Insurance Co. in partnership with the nation’s second-largest financial service firm Woori Finance Holdings Co. South Korea accounted for 21 percent of Aviva’s life and pension sales in Asia Pacific which represents 5 percent of its total business.

Aviva entered the local market for life insurance in 2008 after acquiring a stake in local insurer LIG life Insurance Co. for 137.2 billion won (US$121.2 million).

South Korea stood as the world’s eight largest market for life insurance as of 2008, with a gross premium of $66.4 billion. The United States ranked as the largest market while fast-growing China ranked as sixth biggest, according to the Korea Life Insurance Association.

(Source: Korea Life Insurance Association)

He said the South Korean insurance market, viewed as already saturated by some experts, still has room for further growth and Aviva sees opportunities.

“If you look at the wealth and growth of the country, there will be quite big enough demand (for life insurance policies)” even though there’s a lot of competition in the local market where a large number of big-size insurers compete, Machell said.

“There are still opportunities”.

He noted “the big area which will continue to grow is health insurance products” in South Korea where the insurance market is ripe enough and adopted all ranges of insurance types that further sophistication including sales of more tailored protection will lead the market expansion rather than introduction of new products.

The rate of South Korean households that hold life insurance policies fell for the first time in 30 years last year with 87.5 percent of households owning a life insurance policy with private insurers and public agencies, down 1.7 percentage points from 2006 and the first fall since 1976, according to the Korea Life Insurance Association.

(Source: Korea Life Insurance Association)

In the Korea Herald article Insurers’ IPOs seen as catalyst for change, it was reported that -

Although the industry has 13 domestic and 9 foreign insurance providers, the Korean insurance market is dominated by the top 3 providers, Samsung Life, Korea Life, and Kyobo Life, which collectively hold 53.2% of market share as of 30 September 2009.

Korea Life, the second largest life insurer in Korea, debuted on the Seoul bourse on March 17, marking the country’s second life insurance IPO following Tong Yang Life last year. No. 1 ranked Samsung Life is planning an estimated $4 billion float during the first half of the year, with both Kyobo Life and Mirae Asset Life set to follow suit.

Shinyoung Securities’ Oh noted that in Europe, Canada and elsewhere, IPOs or demutualization took place when the domestic market reached maturity.

“The IPO wave is a key development that will have long- and mid-term effects on the domestic insurance sector,” Oh Jin-won, an analyst at Shinyoung Securities Co., said.

It often brought about industry-wide consolidation or other major changes in the market landscape, he added.

Korea’s population is aging rapidly, creating demand for health-care and post-retirement insurance products. Currently, one in 10 Koreans are aged 65 or older but the ratio is expected to reach 14 percent by 2018.

(Source: Korea Herald, Yonhap, Aviva Press Release, Korea Life Insurance Association)

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The Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA) reported that Korea’s information security market in 2009 reached KRW 807 billion in size, a 9.2% increase from the previous year.

KISA expects sales of the nation’s information security corporations to be KRW 912 billion in 2010, increasing to KRW 1.33 trillion by 2014. Showing a 10.3% CAGR from 2008-2014.

Source: KISA

If you would like information about investment opportunities in Korean companies involved in the information security market please contact Invest KOREA’s Partnership Support Team on (+82) 2-3460-7536, or email investment@kotra.or.kr.

Download the full report from KISA here (Korean), or view an English news report here.

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Korea is one of a few key emerging pharmaceutical markets in the world, according to Peter Jager, president of Novartis Korea.

In a recent interview, he welcomed the Korean government’s announcement in February that it would invest in and support the local drug industry by creating a fund worth 2 trillion won ($1.8 billion) and offering tax breaks to companies researching new drugs.

“It’s laudable that the Korean government has selected the bio-pharmaceutical industry as one of the next-generation growth engines, recognizing its value,” Jager said.

The Korean pharmaceutical market is estimated at approximately $10 billion, making it the 12th largest in the world. It’s expected to move up a few notches in the near future thanks to that support.

“The key drivers of growth are high per-capita consumption and an aging population among others,” Jager said.

And from a story in the Invest KOREA Journal, Jan-Feb, 2009 –

In October 2008 the Novartis Venture Fund (NVF) announced it will invest US$20 million in Korean bio-ventures over the next five years, between 2008 and 2012.

This marks the first time that the NVF has formed a country specific fund and is a decision based on the Korean market’s new drug development potential, the likely synergies to be generated in the life-science R&D field, the country’s strategic geopolitical location in Northeast Asia, and the superb expertise of its human resources.

The same month Neomics Inc., a local bioscience startup working in the field of oncology, was selected as the first recipient of investment by the Fund. Under the contract between the parties, Novartis Venture Fund will initially invest US$1 million in Neomics.

Another bio-venture company, PharmAbcine, specializing in therapeutic antibody treatments, was selected as a recipient for investment through the GATE Project.

An acronym for “Get Armed To Explore Global Markets” the GATE Project was officially launched last March as a combined initiative between Novartis, the Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI), Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology (SAIT), McKinsey & Co., and the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) to provide technology commercialization support to local bio venture start-ups, help them build global competitiveness, and so attract further overseas investment.

See previous post – Korea’s Promising Industries: Biotechnology for more information on investing in Korea’s biotech sector.

According to their website - Novartis Venture Fund holds more than USD 700 million under management and is adviced by stable investment teams based at affiliates in Basel Switzerland and Cambridge, MA USA.

In 2009 our portfolio increased by twelve new investments and now comprises over 60 companies, making the NVF one of the world’s largest corporate biotech venture funds. Including the commitment of other investors, about USD 2 bn is currently invested in total into NVF portfolio companies.

(Sources: JoongAng Daily, Invest KOREA Journal, company website)

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The report stated that domestic e-learning businesses’ sales revenue reached 2.09 trillion won (US$1.82 billion) last year.

With many families struggling with mounting bills, e-learning presents a cheaper learning alternative than attending Korea’s notorious private institutions, known as ‘hakwons’.

Additionally, new government regulations restrict Seoul hakwons from providing classes past 10pm, which according to parents, leaves at least two quality hours which Korean students could spend studying.

Whereas possibly bad news for Korean students, the rapid growth in e-learning is good news for GY Intech a next-generation education provider, delivering services utilizing patented artificial intelligence-based voice recognition technology through video-communication methods.

For more information on the company see Investment Opportunity:  GY Intech.

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The second presentation of the day, titled “Nanotech: Opening a Great New World”, was given by Dr. Lee Jo-won, Director of ‘The National Program for Tera-level Nano devices‘.

Dr. Lee presents on Nanotechnology

The presentation started from the very basics, explaining what nanotechnology actually means – “Nanotechnology“ is a combination of 3 Greek words – nano (meaning dwarf/tiny), techne (skill/craft), and logos (science).

Going on to say, that nanotechnology is the science of making or working with things that are so small that they are only seen through a high-powered microscope.

With the prefix ‘nano’ referring to the size 10(-9) or 0.000000001.

Dr. Lee offered examples from the natural world – such as the structures of geckos feet hair, which enables them to stick to walls.

Understanding these structures could lead to products replicating spider-man like abilities, among more practical applications.

Magnified photo of the hairs on a geckos feet

Asking the question- why do we need nanotechnology?

Dr. Lee answered by explaining nanotech’s cability to cure illness, reduce famine and environmental damage, and halt the depletion of nature resources.

Backing this up, the presenter highlighted various global projects, including:

• The development of a new cell phone charger which uses a nano generator.
• A US university’s announcement that they found a method to make methane gas from CO₂ using nano tubes and sunlight.
• A German developed cure of prostate cancer using nano iron oxide,
• And a robot capsule equipped with a nano camera that can transmit pictures from inside the patient’s body.

Mobile phone charger that uses nanotechnology

Due to the wide array of applications and deep ranging effects, industry analysts and research companies estimate the nanotech global market will be worth upwards of US$2 trillion by 2015 -

Nanotech's Global Market Size Forecasts (Source: Tera Level Nano Devices)

The presentation also looked at the progress of Korea’s nanotech industry, breaking down the 368 commercialized nanotechnology related products between 2004-2008  -

(Source: Tera Level Nano Devices)

Finally, presenting a table from a Lux Research Report showing that Korea’s technology strength is world leading, whereas the nation’s nanotech activity only lags a few -

(Lux Research Report on nanotech activity and strength)

The materials remain the property of Tera Level Nano Devices and should not be reproduced without their written permission.

For more information on the presentation, opportunities within Korea’s nanotech industry, or about other upcoming events please contact Ms. Soomin Lee on +82-2-3460-7539, or at investment@kotra.or.kr.

(Translating by Han Doo-hee)

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First established in 2009, the Investment Seminar series is designed to educate investors about  particularly attractive Korean industries, and to present investment opportunities in Korean SMEs from within these fields.

About sixty investors and industry observers attended the first seminar of 2010, which was on the topics of the global and Korean photovoltaic (PV) and nanotech industries.

Investment Seminar: PV & Nanotech Industries

Leading off was Kenny Kim VP of Solar&Energy (the renewable energy research division of Displaybank) with his presentation “Toward Grid Parity – ‘V’ shaped growth of the PV Industry“

Kenny Kim presents on global and local PV industry trends

Below is a summary of the presentation –

Mr. Kim began by taking a look at the global PV industry, highlighting the current solar cell oversupply, before demonstrating the V-shaped  growth forecast, with a 38% growth rate forecast for 2010 -

(Property of Displaybank)

He also touched on the global market scale and revenue forecast up to 2013, forecasting 8.3 GWp of PV installations, and US$22.3 bn in production revenue, down from US$23 bn in 2009 -

(Property of Displaybank)

Taking a look at the market by technology, thanks to decreasing manufacturing costs, and increasing efficiency, the market share of thin-film solar cells is set to keep growing, accounting for 26.7% of total market share in 2013 -

(Property of Displaybank)

Then narrowing the focus to South Korea’s PV industry, Mr. Kim highlighted that the sum of South Korea’s Solar cell companies operating ratio had increased to 68.4% by the fourth quarter of 2009, up from 30.5% in the first quarter -

(Property of Displaybank)

Taking a closer look at South Korea’s PV market, the presenter noted that in 2010 the downward trend would slow, before turning around in 2011 with 25% growth -

(Property of Displaybank)

Then looking at where Korea sits in the global market, Korea is forecast to occupy 2% of global market share in 2010, whilst in the polysilicon division Korea’s market share is set to grow from 11% last year to 18% in 2012 -

(Property of Displaybank)

Looking much further ahead to 2020, Mr. Kim forecast that Korea would be responsible for 32.2% of the global solar cell production basing this assumption on Korea’s strength in related industries, such as semiconductors and display -

(Property of Displaybank)

The materials remain the property of Displaybank and should not be reproduced without their written permission. They can be contacted at displaybank@displaybank.com.

For more information on the presentation, opportunities within Korea’s PV industry, or about other upcoming events please contact Ms. Soomin Lee on +82-2-3460-7539, or at investment@kotra.or.kr.

(Translating by Han Doo-hee)

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