SK will move in earnest into building AI infrastructure in Vietnam. SK Innovation and SK Telecom are seeking to establish a cooperation framework in Vietnam that links the construction of AI data centres with power supply.

SK said on April 24 it signed separate memorandums of understanding with the Nghe An provincial government and Vietnam's National Innovation Center (NIC) to create an AI ecosystem at a South Korea-Vietnam business forum in Hanoi.

An agreement ceremony held on April 23 was attended by Hyeongwook Chu (추형욱), chief executive of SK Innovation, Jaeheon Jung (정재헌), CEO of SK Telecom, and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won (최태원). On the Vietnamese side, Nguyen Khac Than, party secretary of Nghe An province, Vo Trong Hai, chairman of the Nghe An provincial People's Committee, and Vu Quoc Huy, director of the NIC, attended.

SK Innovation and SK Telecom will jointly review with the Nghe An provincial government a project to build AI data centres and related infrastructure in the region. Nghe An is a port and logistics hub in north-central Vietnam where manufacturing, energy and high-tech industries are being actively fostered.

SK Innovation will explore energy cooperation opportunities, including supplying electricity to data centres and establishing dedicated power sources, linked to the Quynh Lap LNG power project, for which it was selected as an operator in February. SK Telecom will review plans to develop, build and operate AI data centres and seek ways to secure global demand.

The Quynh Lap LNG power project is being pursued by a consortium formed by SK Innovation with PV Power, a unit of Vietnam's state-run oil and gas group PVN, and local company NASU. It will build a 1,500 megawatt combined-cycle gas power plant along with an LNG terminal and a dedicated port, with a target to start construction in 2027 and complete in 2030.

At the forum, the Nghe An provincial government presented the SK Innovation consortium with an investment registration certificate for the Quynh Lap power project. Chu said in a forum presentation, "Based on SK's capabilities, we will complete the construction of local power infrastructure without setbacks."

SK Telecom and SK Innovation also signed a separate MOU with the NIC. They set cooperation areas including building AI data centres, developing energy infrastructure, and laying a policy and institutional foundation to foster the AI industry. SK Telecom will be responsible for technical cooperation and support for attracting investment, while SK Innovation will provide energy solutions.

The NIC will handle institutional support such as consultations with government ministries, regulatory improvements and finding local partners. The NIC is an advanced technology and startup development organisation established by the Vietnamese government in 2019, and SK has continued its cooperation, including providing $30 million at the time of its establishment. Jung said, "Based on SK's capabilities to develop, build and operate AI data centres, we will flesh out an AI data centre cooperation model tailored to local conditions in Vietnam."

The cooperation is meaningful as it is the first example abroad of the 'AI full-stack provider' strategy pursued by Chey taking concrete shape. SK has aimed to implement an AI infrastructure model that links semiconductors, data centres, power and energy, and AI services. In South Korea, it is pushing ahead with AWS to build the 100 megawatt hyperscale 'SK AI Data Center Ulsan' with a target for completion in 2027, and it is also discussing cooperation with OpenAI to build AI data centres.

Chey said at a business meeting, "SK has portfolio capabilities across the AI ecosystem, from energy to semiconductors, AI models and application services, and based on that we will make a tangible contribution to the development of Vietnam's AI industry."