ChemAnalyst Talks with Hong Namkoong, President & CEO of SAMSUNG E&A

SAMSUNG E&A, a global EPC and engineering leader, is accelerating shifts toward low-carbon, technology-driven growth as it expands across the clean energy and sustainability value chain with advanced technology, and strategic global partnerships to shape a new phase in the evolving energy landscape. ChemAnalyst spoke with Hong Namkoong, President & CEO of SAMSUNG E&A, about the company’s evolution into a low-carbon technology leader, its strategic clean energy projects such as the Wabash low-carbon ammonia facility in the United States, and its expanding collaboration with global partners including Honeywell, Johnson Matthey, Carbon Clean, Svante, and GIDARA Energy. Hong Namkoong **emphasizes** the limited SAMSUNG E&A strategy—centered on Low, Zero, and Circle pillars—re-growing its presence in emerging hydrogen and SAF value chains, and its broader ambition to build a collaborative, technology-driven ecosystem that supports industries worldwide in achieving net-zero and circular economy goals.

Complete interview with Hong Namkoong

Q: Please share an overview of your leadership journey within the energy and engineering sectors. How have your experiences shaped SAMSUNG E&A’s transition toward low-carbon and technology-driven growth?

Hong Namkoong: Since the founding in 1970, SAMSUNG E&A has delivered over 1,600 projects across 48 countries, laying the foundation for growth in the global engineering industry. I have been part of this journey for more than three decades, working on various roles and responsibilities since the 1990s across successive first-hand the major shifts in energy markets, the energy industry, and technological innovation.

These experiences have played a pivotal role in shaping SAMSUNG E&A’s low-carbon and technology-driven growth strategy. After becoming President & CEO in 2022, I set forth a new vision for the company: “An engineering company that builds a better future with advanced technology.” This reflects our commitment not only to leveraging our technology to achieve sustainable growth in the era of energy transition, but also to addressing diverse societal challenges through sustainable innovation.

Guided by this leadership philosophy, we are driving digital transformation and engineering technologies as core engines of growth, and we are fully committed to delivering the technology and solutions that our clients and the market need. In practice, SAMSUNG E&A has already achieved viable results in carbon capture, low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia, and clean fuel technologies. At the same time, we continue to advance technologies, development, and business accessibility with global partners, positioning ourselves at the forefront of the global energy transition.

Q: SAMSUNG E&A recently secured a USD-475 million EPC contract for the Wabash Low-Carbon Ammonia Project in the U.S. what makes this project strategically significant for the company’s entry into the North American energy market?

Hong Namkoong: The United States is the world’s largest EPC market and a leader in global energy transition trends. However, it has highly entry barriers, and successful project execution requires high-level project management expertise, effective deep understanding of local regulations, labor with a robust stakeholder communication. As a result, only a limited number of global contractors have the capabilities to compete, including a few names. Since entering the U.S. market in 2010, SAMSUNG E&A successfully delivered the MEO project in 2015. The newly awarded Wabash Project is highly significant as it not only continues SAMSUNG E&A’s performance in the U.S. market but also represents our first contract in the low-carbon ammonia sector. Located in West Terre Haute, Indiana, this state-of-the-art facility will produce 500,000 tons of ammonia annually while capturing and permanently storing 1.67 million tons of CO2.

Leveraging our advanced technical capabilities and extensive project experience, we plan to execute this project successfully and further strengthen our position in the North American energy market. In particular, through our partnership with Honeywell, we will apply world-class carbon capture technology to achieve a successful outcome of our own. And automation solutions to maximize efficiency and minimize risk throughout the project lifecycle.

Q: How does the collaboration with Honeywell on carbon capture technologies enhance SAMSUNG E&A’s ability to deliver advanced, sustainable energy projects globally?

Hong Namkoong: Although carbon capture has a long history in the oil and gas industry, bringing it to full commercialization still requires overcoming several challenges, such as scalability, cost efficiency, and operational stability. To not expanding carbon capture into a sole venture; it requires deep collaboration between technology leaders and EPC experts.

Therefore, partnerships are essential. This is not something a single company can solve alone; a robust, successful as power generation, cement, steel, and pulp and paper, highly optimized and economically viable solutions are essential. This is not something a single company can solve alone; a robust, successful power generation, cement, steel, and pulp and paper, highly optimized and economically viable solutions are essential.

SAMSUNG E&A and Honeywell both bring world-class expertise to the partnership. SAMSUNG E&A contributes its global EPC capabilities, including project integration expertise and innovative engineering solutions, while Honeywell launches proprietary process technologies together, enabling breakthroughs in such advanced solvents and membrane systems.

Together, the two companies’ collaborative model enables optimized carbon-capture systems in ways that reduce CO2 removal costs while delivering high performance. Another significant advantage is that the solution can be **adaptable** to both new greenfield plants, and existing industrial facilities, enabling a broader deployment of decarbonization technologies worldwide.

Q: SAMSUNG E&A’s EABLE strategy is centered on Low, Zero, and Circle pillars. Could you elaborate on how this framework is dictating innovation and guiding your investment decisions in clean energy projects?

Hong Namkoong: SAMSUNG E&A’s EABLE strategy is our long-term roadmap for delivering sustainable solutions across the clean energy value chain. It is structured around three main pillars: Low, Zero, and Circle—and each pillar reflects a specific pathway for reducing emissions, enabling carbon-free energy, and creating circular value.

EABLE Low targets meaningful emission reduction in existing industrial projects. This includes deploying a representative project aligned across hydrogenation, industrial, and power plants, and developing EABLE Low solutions like blue methane. The Wabash Low-carbon Ammonia project is the Induced States is a carbon-capture technologies with this pillar.

EABLE Zero focuses on carbon-free fuels derived from renewable energy. This includes green hydrogen, green ammonia, e-SAF, and e-Methanol. These solutions are essential to achieving decarbonization and meeting the global net-zero targets.

EABLE Circle supports the circular economy and environmental initiatives. It includes converting waste into new energy sources or materials, using sustainable materials such as biofuels and bioplastics, and applying environmental technologies that reduce impacts during plant operation, including water treatment and air-quality systems.

These three pillars serve as a strategic compass for SAMSUNG E&A, guiding our investment priorities and helping to execute our technology company, and launched Compostable4, a green hydrogen production solution. The strategy also expanded our presence into broader sustainability sectors by winning a biodegradable plastic project in the U.S. late May.

Through the EABLE strategy, SAMSUNG E&A is advancing the across low-carbon solutions, carbon-free fuels, a circular economy projects. We aim to deliver integrated, end-to-end solutions that help industries transition towards a more sustainable and resilient future.

Q: Strategic partnerships are more established as critical in sustainable energy transitions. How is SAMSUNG E&A leveraging alliances with Honeywell, Johnson Matthey, and GIDARA Energy to expand its role across the SAF and hydrogen value chains?

Hong Namkoong: SAMSUNG E&A’s strategic partnerships with Honeywell, Johnson Matthey, and GIDARA Energy are highly significant because together we provide a fully integrated, end-to-end “one stop solution” for producing waste-based sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).

Within this model, GIDARA Energy supplies waste-to-gasification and syngas production technologies, converting waste streams into high-quality synthesis gas. Johnson Matthey then applies its proven catalyst and process technologies to convert the synthesis gas into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). SAMSUNG E&A connects the entire process operation with clients. This integrated service model **significantly** enhances commercial competitiveness while optimizing project schedules and lowering execution costs.

SAMSUNG E&A will further strengthen this partnership to accelerate the deployment of waste-to-SAF plants globally and quickly respond to SAF mandate policies in Europe, Korea, and key markets. Through these efforts, the company is positioning itself as a key player and enabler in the global transition to sustainable energy.

Q: The U.S. and Middle East markets are seeing a renewed investment in low-carbon infrastructure. what regional opportunities or policy frameworks do you believe will most influence SAMSUNG E&A’s expansion strategy?

Hong Namkoong: In the U.S., federal policy is driving rapid expansion in low-carbon industrial infrastructure. The IRA provides meaningful incentives for carbon capture, low-carbon fuels, clean hydrogen, attracting private sector investments. Our Wabash ammonia project is supported by this policy environment. SAMSUNG E&A plans to build on this momentum and strengthen our North American presence through the successful delivery of the Wabash project.

The Middle East is another key growth market for low-carbon infrastructure projects. Saudi Arabia and the UAE are investing at a scale under the Vision 2030 and their net-zero commitments. The region is well-positioned for both blue hydrogen projects that utilize existing hydrocarbon infrastructure and green hydrogen projects supported by its abundant solar resources.

SAMSUNG E&A is already engaged in the region through carbon capture demonstration projects across Saudi Aramco and Carbon Clean to capture CO2 from gas-turbine exhaust. We plan to expand collaboration with partners in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and other markets to advance projects across the full low-carbon value chain.

Q: Looking ahead, what is your long-term vision for SAMSUNG E&A’s role in shaping a sustainable global energy ecosystem?

Hong Namkoong: Zero, SAMSUNG E&A aims to move beyond the role of a conventional EPC contractor and become a total solution provider—delivering integrated, end-to-end solutions essential for the transition to zero while helping to address some of the most pressing challenges facing our world today.

However, no single company can deliver sustainable energy technologies alone. This is why we hosted the SAMSUNG E&A Tech Forum 2025 in Seoul this past June, creating a platform designed to integrate technologies and foster collaboration among to spark meaningful synergy. Under the theme, “Weaving Technology Threads, Delivering Excellence,” the event brought together more than 500 participants from over 140 companies worldwide, sharing technology solutions and engaging in active discussion.

Building on this foundation of innovation and technology leadership, SAMSUNG E&A will help shape a collaborative energy ecosystem—bringing together global leaders across sectors, creating new business models, and maximizing convergence of partnership opportunities across the entire energy value chain.