Hyundai Oilbank, one of Korea’s major oil refiners, said Wednesday that the company had recorded more than 7 million man-hours of accident-free work since late October in 2013 -- equivalent to 1,007 days of operation. This is the first time that a Korean oil refiner has surpassed 1,000 days without accident. Hyundai Oilbank‘s previous record was in 1989, when it succeeded in making 810 accident-free days. “Over 1,000 days of accident-free work is the fruitful result made by employees who thoroug

Korea’s major industries are projected to contract in the second half of this year, a report showed Wednesday. According to the state-invested Korea Development Bank, the amount of orders that local shipbuilders receive will plummet by 88.2 percent in the second half of this year. In the first half, they fell by 94.6 percent on-year. The bank also forecast that construction firms’ orders will shrink by 7.4 percent this year, with a decline both locally and overseas.The display industry is also a

Korea’s top 10 conglomerates were found to make up more than half of the nation‘s total stock market value, a report showed Wednesday. According to corporate tracker CEO Score, the market capitalization of 181 listed companies owned by 10 top conglomerates recorded 778.5 trillion won ($698 billion) as of late last month, with 416 family members owning 70 trillion won. The entire listed companies under the 10 top groups accounted for 51.2 percent of the total market price of the Korean stock mark

Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering is to receive $470 million from four ship owners earlier than expected, easing concerns about the liquidity of the money-losing shipbuilder, industry sources said Tuesday. The plan was disclosed ahead of the upcoming expiry of its corporate bill, according to the sources. The Korean shipbuilder said that the four ship owners agreed to make payments earlier than expected and they are expected to do so no later than next month. Another client company that

Speculation is growing that the takeover problem of the Sonangol project is expected to be clear no later than this week, determining whether Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering will be able to receive the scheduled contract fee, sources said Monday. In October 2013, Angola’s state-run oil company Sonangol placed an order for two drill ships with the Korean shipbuilder with $1.2 billion. Sonangol initially agreed to pay 80 percent of the contract fee -- $990 million --when it takes over t

An annual design festival led by Herald Corp. kicked off Friday with an aim to better support and introduce innovative products by local leading designers, the company said.Visitors purchase items at the Hi Design Festival’s design market, which opened in Seoul on Friday. (Yoon Byung-chan/The Korea Herald)Calling itself “a design culture festival enjoyed by all in one fine summer day,” the 3rd Hi, Design Festival offers programs including product markets, hands-on experiences and one-day classes

POSCO Daewoo, a subsidiary of steelmaker POSCO, decided to withdraw from a Korean consortium that took part in a Nickel plant project in Madagascar, due mainly to a continuous deficit issue prompted by the plummeting Nickel price, the company said Friday. Since 2006, POSCO Daewoo has injected 150 billion won ($134 million) into a Nickel mine project in Ambatovy, Madagascar, after forming the Korea Ambatovy Consortium with STX and Korea Resources Corp. POSCO Daewoo’s withdrawal from the Ambatovy

State-run Korea Electric Power Corp. is currently under a tax investigation as part of the government’s regular probe, sources said Thursday. This is the first time in eight years that the agency is being probed by the National Tax Service.  (Yonhap)The Seoul tax office regularly conducts tax probes into medium and large-size corporations worth over 50 billion won ($44 million). The authorities are investigating possible tax evasion when the firm placed construction orders. The probe, launched e

Hyundai Heavy Industries made a “surprise” operating profit in the second quarter of the year, but two other rival shipbuilders are projected to post losses, analysts said Thursday. Samsung Heavy Industries, which is scheduled to release its Q2 earnings  Friday, is expected to post an operating loss, due mainly to the delay of two major projects.The company’s project to build Prelude floating liquefied natural gas facilities for multinational firm Shell has been delayed to April next year. The p

Korea’s major construction firms have seen a rise in their operating profits of the second quarter, thanks to the jump of orders and expansion to the overseas market, industry analysts said. Hyundai Engineering and Construction said on Wednesday that its operating profit rose by 5.5 percent to 268 billion won ($236 million) in the second quarter on-year.The sales dropped by 2.7 percent to 4.69 trillion won but the net profit jumped by 16.4 percent to 167.7 billion won. In the first half of this

Korean builder Daewoo Engineering & Construction is boosting its efforts in the energy field, with various projects in both fossil fuel and renewable fields. Last year, the company mapped out a long-term plan to become a “global infrastructure and energy developer“ by 2025 with an aim to offer a comprehensive solution from planning and construction to power plant operation.Since 2013, the company has focused on projects concerning an independent power producer that helps generate electric power

Aggressive investment in non-refining businesses have helped Korean oil refineries secure and boost operating profits in the first half of this year, with major companies showing record high performances, market analysts said Tuesday.In the first half of this year, SK Innovation’s operating profit hit a record high of 1.96 trillion won ($1.17 billion). This is the first time that operating profit for a local oil refinery has reached nearly 2 trillion won in half a year. While the lagging effect

Johannes Thammer, the head of AudiVolkswagen Korea, responds to questions from the Korean media after participating in the hearing over the emissions scandal at National Institute of Environmental Research in Incheon, Monday. Starting from Monday, the company said it would voluntarily suspend the sales of problematic vehicles which will face administrative measures from the Environment Ministry soon. (Yonhap)

Korea has reached a landmark deal with the United Arab Emirates to operate four nuclear reactors currently under construction in the Middle East country, officials said Monday. The state-run Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power said it made an operation support services agreement with the UAE Emirates Nuclear Energy Corp. over operating the four Advanced Power Reactor-1400 nuclear reactors at Barakah.  KHNP president Cho Seok (right) and UAE ENEC CEO Mohamed Al Hammadi exchange gifts after reaching a nuc

The Seoul government has set up a basic scheme to safely manage spent nuclear fuel, amid public calls for clear safety measures for the used nuclear fuel, officials said Monday. The government’s nuclear power committee, chaired by Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, said it has drawn up the country’s first scheme for the safe management of high-level radioactive waste. Under the new basic scheme, the government will determine the site for a permanent disposal facility based on scientific and democrati