Korea Night at Davos Forum

Event hosted by FKI with support of SK Group promotes Korea's brand value to the world

Chairman Chey Tae-won of SK Group took advantage of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, from Jan. 28 - Feb. 1 to advance the group's resources exploration projects by attending the Korea Night reception on the sidelines of the annual international event on Jan. 29, the group said recently.
The chairman attended the WEF for the fifth time and spent most of his time collecting information on resources exploration, energy in particular, and strengthened his ties with world business and political leaders assembled at the international event. Among some of the VIPs attending the forum with Chey were Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao; President Alvarro Uribe of Columbia; Al Phali, chairman of Aramco; and Christopher Cole, chairman of Goldman Sachs to discuss business conditions around the world. Chairman Chey discussed SK Group's future business plans with many of the leaders, especially in regards to resources exploration around the world. He called on Premier Wen at a luncheon of 20 business and political leaders hosted by Chairman Klaus Schwab of WEF.
Chey explained to the premier the group's plan to engage in the Ubiquitous City project in China and asked for his help. He also met with Columbian President Uribe for an hour and proposed to him his intention to expand SK Energy's plan to expand its offshore oil exploration in Columbia. The Columbian President responded positively, suggesting they should seek win-win projects for both SK Group and Columbia. Last year, SK Energy secured the rights to explore oil three offshore oil-mining districts in Columbia.
Chairman Chey also met with Chairman Tariq Al-Qahtami of Aramco and asked for his help ensuring a stable supply of crude oil to the SK Energy-run oil refinery in Korea. Chey also had a visit from Pres. Shuwaib of the Kuwaiti Petroleum Co. and Al Baddagh of the Saudi Gen. Investment Authority to discuss the participation of Korean companies in the projected construction of a large oil refinery in the Middle East. Chey also met and discussed the extent of the financial crisis sweeping the world with a number of key world financial leaders including Cole of Goldman Sachs and Chairman Peter Sands of Standard Chartered Bank.
At Korea Night, an international reception initiated by Chey and hosted officially by the Federation of Korea Industries (FKI), an estimated 300 world leaders in both government and business attended, led by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, a former Korean foreign minister; Czech Republic President Vaclav Klause; President Paul Kagame of Rwanda; Prime Minister Han Seung-soo; Gov. Christian Noyer of the Bank of France; Prime Minister of Albania Sali Berisha; Energy Minister Mohamed Al Hamli of the United Arab Emirates; Al Baddagh, minister of the Gen. Investment Authority of Saudi Arabia; Gov. Clemens Borsig of Deutsch Bank; Cole; Sands; Chairman Raymond McDaniel of Moody's Inc.; Rep. Park Jin, chairman of the National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Trade Committee; Rep. Won Hye-ryong; and President Chung Ui-son of Kia Motors Co. and other political and business leaders from Korea.
Prime Minister Han said the countries that can overcome the current world economic crisis would be limited, having to make so many sacrifices, but it can be overcome through international cooperation for mutual survival.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban said Korea has achieved an economic miracle in such a short span of time, with its mature politics and maturing democracy. "My fatherland, I pray, will continue to prosper in the future," the top U.N. official said at Korea Night.
FKI Chairman S.R. Cho said despite the economic crisis, the Korean economy is sound compared to the 1998 foreign exchange crisis and introduced the President Lee government's business-friendly policies.
Along with Cho, the official host of the reception, Chey also welcomed a large number of world political and business leaders who visited the event.
Chey thanked the foreign visitors to the event in fluent English and asked for their continued concern for Korea, getting huge rounds of applause in return from the visitors. He told a reporter that he got the idea for Korea Night from the Maeil Business Newspaper and the FKI became the official host with the support of SK Group.
Chey had people from Walker-Hill Hotel in Seoul to serve food and beverages at the event. Chey first conceived the idea to use the reception as an opportunity to let the world know more about Korea to further publicize the brand value of the country to the world. nw

(Photos Clockwise) A number of foreign visitors is lined up with Prime Minister Han Seung-soo,3rd R, at Korea Night held at Davos Forum, in Davos, Switzerland. Prime Minister Han Seung-soo. Chairman S.R. Cho of the Federation of Korean Industries and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won exchange conversations with a visitor at Korea Night as the official host of the Korean event at the World Economic Forum. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also visited Korea Night.