SK Group expands in Vietnam with AI data center plans

SK Group signed MOUs on April 24 in Hanoi with Nghe An provincial government and the National Innovation Center.

The agreements aim to explore AI data centers and related energy infrastructure as the two countries expand cooperation in AI semiconductors and energy.

SK Innovation and SK Telecom will study an AI data center in Nghe An tied to the Quynh Lap LNG project.

This includes a 1.5-gigawatt gas plant and terminal planned to start construction in 2027 and finish in 2030.

In a separate pact, Vietnam’s state-backed National Innovation Center will work with the two SK units on AI infrastructure policy support and investment after receiving US$30 million from SK for its establishment in 2019.

🔗 Source: The Korea Herald

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SK Group brings its energy and AI model to Vietnam

SK plans to pair a data center with a liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant in Vietnam. The setup follows its approach in Ulsan, South Korea, where an on-site LNG power source lowers costs versus grid power from Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), the country’s main utility 1.
The US$2.3 billion development is the first project outside South Korea to use SK Innovation’s integrated LNG value chain. SK Innovation will send globally sourced LNG to a terminal it is helping build 2.
SK calls the model a “Specialized Energy-Industry Cluster.” The LNG plant serves as the base for AI data centers and logistics facilities 3.
The site also uses “cold energy” from the LNG process to cool servers more efficiently. SK Telecom said it plans to use that method at a Vietnam AI data center (AIDC) and has included it in its AIDC strategy 4.

SK Telecom treats AI as a survival plan

The buildout comes as SK Telecom faces pressure. In the third quarter, it posted a net loss of 206.6 billion won (US$143 million), while its AI business rose 32.2% from the prior quarter 5.
The company wants to sell more than connectivity. It is packaging “sovereign AI” services with SK Group chips and related capabilities so countries can build local AI systems 6.
The approach goes after a hard limit in AI growth, which is electricity. Demand from AI data centers could climb as much as 165% by the end of the decade, giving SK an edge when it pairs facilities with dedicated power 6.
SK Telecom said this full-service plan will help it grow in Southeast Asia. The company also plans AI data centers in Malaysia and Singapore 7.