Younghoon David Kim

Daesung’s Kim named chairman of WEC

 

Younghoon David Kim

 

 

Daesung Group Chairman Younghoon David Kim was inaugurated chairman of the World Energy Council (WEC), the United Nations accredited energy body, on Thursday.

 

He is the first Korean to head the council. Founded in 1923, the London-based council represents over 3,000 member organizations in 92 countries. Its aim is to “promote the sustainable supply and use of energy,” the council said.

 

Kim will serve for three years as chairman along with Jean-Marie Dauger, a former Executive Vice-Chair at France-based global energy player Engie, who was elected as co-chair. The co-chair will succeed the chairman after his term.

 

“We are seeing a steady paradigm shift from a carbon-based economy powered by the combustion of fossil fuels to one based on new sources of energy and new modes of power generation,” Kim said in his inaugural speech. “Now, what this industry needs are visionaries who have the whole picture in their sights. We need to seek out and support the future Michael Faradays toiling in the labs or workshops from Nairobi to New York.”

 

The inaugural ceremony was held in Istanbul, where the World Energy Congress, a triennial event held by the council to discuss global energy issues with leaders in the sector, took place.

 

Marking its 23rd iteration, the congress was held from Sunday through Thursday with the participation of 250 speakers including President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin and President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan, as well as leaders of global energy giants such as Bob Dudley, CEO of BP, and Amin Nasser, CEO of Saudi Aramco.

 

The major topic of discussion at the four-day event was how to balance the energy “trilemma” - energy security, energy equity and environmental sustainability.

 

Kim served as co-chair from 2013 until his inauguration Thursday.

 

BY KIM JEE-HEE [kim.jeehee@joongang.co.kr]