Vivien Signs Strategic MOU with Marine Vessels, Accelerates Offshore Wind Power Business

From the left, Kim Joungho, Representative of Marine Vessels, a joint venture specializing in comprehensive marine services, and Hwang Taeyoung, CEO of Honam New and Renewable Energy Corporation. Vivian

Vivien (002070), a domestic fashion company, has partnered with a marine operation and tugboat specialist company to enhance its logistics and infrastructure competitiveness in the offshore wind power business. With this, it has successfully established its first external strategic partnership since the formation of its joint venture, accelerating efforts to build a value chain for offshore wind projects.

On August 19, Vivien announced that it recently signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Marine Vessels, a joint venture, for collaboration in offshore wind power and marine project businesses.

This agreement marks the first strategic partnership with an external enterprise by Honam New and Renewable Energy Corporation, a company specializing in renewable energy jointly founded with 49% ownership by Vivien and 51% by Kwanglim. Through this collaboration, the two parties plan to expand their business scope from project development and project management (PM) of the offshore wind projects to equipment procurement, operations and maintenance (O&M), and offshore logistics.

Marine Vessels specializes in marine operations and tugboat management. Kwanglim, which established the joint venture with Vivien, is a company that has produced and supplied crane trucks and special-purpose equipment, and has recently been expanding into the offshore wind sector.

On August 13, Kwanglim entered into an agreement with Jeonnam Development Corporation for joint development of the Yeonggwang offshore wind power project. Building on this, the company is concretizing its renewable energy business by promoting an offshore wind power project of 160 megawatts (MW) in the Yeonggwang County area.

Vivien has also been preparing to enter the renewable energy business. Previously, at a shareholder meeting, the company added renewable energy generation and related business to its articles of incorporation, laying the foundation to expand into new businesses beyond its original focus on fashion and consumer goods.

This partnership is meaningful in that, rather than direct construction of offshore wind farms, the focus is on infrastructure areas such as project development, operation, and logistics. The company expects demand for related projects and operational infrastructure to rise; this is in line with the government’s goal to achieve 100 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy early, with offshore wind promoted as a core renewable energy source.

The two companies will combine Honam New and Renewable Energy Corporation’s capabilities in business development and project management with Marine Vessels’ experience in tugboat operations and offshore infrastructure. Through this, they aim to establish a stable operation base for offshore wind farms and expand into long-term O&M businesses.

The scope of cooperation has also been clarified. For each project, O&M, equipment, and vessels will be bundled as a single package, and a long-term supply chain will be built to secure vessels reliably. The companies will jointly establish offshore operation centers and safety management systems, and are also considering introducing offshore wind-specific vessels including tugboats, crew transfer vessels (CTVs), and specialty vessels. They are also pursuing the establishment of a joint sales network targeting power generation operators and EPC companies.

Each party will take on distinct roles. Honam New and Renewable Energy Corporation will be responsible for discovering business opportunities, PM, equipment procurement, joint O&M, and liaising with relevant institutions. Marine Vessels will leverage its tugboat operation expertise to provide vessels, equipment, and manpower and will handle offshore transportation of equipment, on-site safety management, and administrative coordination work.

Starting with this partnership, Vivien aims to secure competitiveness in the logistics and operation field of the offshore wind power business and further expand related projects in the future.

Vivien CEO Son Youngseop said, “This MOU is the first substantial achievement covering the entire value chain of offshore wind since the establishment of the joint venture. By reducing risks associated with direct construction and strengthening our capabilities in investment and project management, we will enhance our business competitiveness as a platform for logistics and on-site response in offshore wind power.”

With this agreement, Vivien will move beyond its fashion-centered business and, leveraging the joint venture, will embark in earnest on expanding into renewable energy businesses spanning offshore wind project development, logistics, and O&M.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.