Kim, Hong | Yulchon LLC

Kim, Hong

Partner

T. +82-2-528-5053

hkim@yulchon.com V-card

Practice Areas

Corporate & Finance Mergers & Acquisitions Asset Management Fund/PE Energy EHS (Environment, Health and Safety) AI Data Center (AIDC) ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) Workplace Safety Real Estate Advisory(Real Estate Transactions, Real Estate Finance)

Introduction
Representative Matters
Awards/Recognition
News/Publications

Introduction

Hong Kim, a Corporate&Finance Group partner at Yulchon, has primarily practiced in corporate governance, merger/acquisition (M&A), fund/PE, asset management/collective investment, real estate counseling, climate change, chemical safety, renewable energy and environment. Mr. Kim obtained the Bachelor of Laws degree and completed the master course (Environmental Law) at Seoul National University. He completed the 34th course at the Judicial Research and Training Institute. After his service as a military advocate, he had worked at Shin & Kim for 8 years since 2008 as a partner in corporate counseling team. In 2013, Hong Kim completed LL.M. program at University of California, Berkeley in the US specializing in new and renewable energy field and obtained the Certificate of Specialization in Energy and Clean Technology Law. After the program, Mr.Kim had worked as an Overseas Qualified Lawyer at silicon valley office of Reed Smith LLP in the US for 9 months rendering legal counseling services regarding applicable Korean laws for American companies and establishment of a US principal office and conversion of the existing head office in Korea into a subsidiary for Korean Companies which wish to jump into the US market. Since joining Yulchon LLC, he has provided legal counseling on various cases ranging from M&A deals, domestic and foreign investment projects by Korean and foreign PE firms, real estate transactions and development and sales of logistics centers. In particular, Hong Kim plays a significant part in the Environment/Energy practice at Yulchon, focusing on legal counseling for major companies in relation to the environment, industrial safety and new and renewable energy. He has rendered legal counseling services for investors, which specialize in businesses relating to the environment, new and renewable energy and, which primarily invests in such businesses on projects for developing new and renewable energy such as inland and offshore energy, solar energy, inland and offshore wind power, biomass energy and for developing fuel cell power plants and on financing therefor. Furthermore, Mr.Kim took part in a number of environmental cases, advising incineration plant, waste landfill, waste water treatment facility, waste recycling companies on acquisition investement deals and response to regulations, etc.

Education

2013 University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, LL.M.
2005 Judicial Research and Training Institute, the Supreme Court of Korea
2003 Seoul National University, LL.M.
2000 Seoul National University, LL.B.

Experience

2016-present Yulchon LLC
2013-2014 Reed Smith, LLP.
2008-2015 Shin & Kim
2005-2008 Judge Advocate, Republic of Korea Army

Qualifications

2005 Admitted to Bar , Republic of Korea

Languages

Korean, English

Representative Matters

[Energy and New/Renewable Energy]
Advised Company S, a Korean asset management firm specializing in alternative and infrastructure investments, on its purchase of a majority of the shares in Topson Co., Ltd., a solar power systems developer, from Company S (ongoing)
Advised Company Y, an energy company, on the legal matters of a purchase contract for the main system (steam turbine generator) for the development of an LNG combined heat and power plant (ongoing)
Advised Company T, which specializes in onshore wind power development and investment, on the establishment of a domestic platform company for onshore wind power development and on the acquisition and development of onshore wind power projects located in Pohang and Yeongdeok, Korea (ongoing).
Advised a domestic PEF management firm I on its project to acquire 49.9% shares in Boryung LNG Terminal from Company S
Advised Company N on the preparation, revision and execution of a direct LNG purchase agreement (ongoing)
Advised a large Korean corporation K on its development and construction of a total 300MW floating solar power project by leading a consortium comprising three municipal governments across the Saemangeum reclamation area (ongoing)
Advised Companies M and S on a project to establish group energy facilities (steam production and power generation facilities) to be delivered to a semiconductor cluster industrial complex at Yong-in (ongoing)
Advised on a loan transaction whereby Bank N provides USD 100 million for a project financing of a 2.4GW offshore wind power plant to be developed in Virginia, U.S.
Advised Company S on its project of repowering an onshore wind power plant located at PyeongChang, Gangwon Province, Korea as a co-developer (project underway)

Advised a Korean company ‘I’ on a joint high-pressure hydrogen container R&D and production project with technical support from Company ‘A’, a foreign industrial gas manufacturer and supplier (ongoing)
Advised a major domestic corporation, Company H, on a business transfer related to the acquisition of 10 wind power projects (onshore and offshore wind farms) and a plant business unit that are currently completed, in operation, or under development, from an affiliated company within the group.
Advising chemical company I on joint development with overseas company K of an ammonia cracking demonstration project aimed at demonstrating hydrogen-producing technologies using ammonia as the primary raw material (ongoing)
Advised Korean private equity fund A on the transaction involving sale of Company E, a hydrogen containers manufacturer
Advised Korean financial institution K on project financing of a photovoltaics business entity undertaking a project involving acquisition and clustering of existing photovoltaic power stations, and development of new photovoltaic power stations
Advised on the investment structure, preparation of agreement on JV establishment regarding a project in which companies H and S form a joint venture and promote new businesses including supply of renewable energy and VPP
Advised an Australian private fund on its acquisition of all of the shares of a Korean onshore wind power plant development corporation and developing wind power plant (In progress)
Provided legal advice on offshore wind power permits and licenses, project development and financing of foreign companies K and E developing offshore wind power plants off the coast of Ulsan (In progress)
Advising on five offshore wind power generation projects that are currently being implemented in Korea jointly by a global fund and energy companies and on business structure for implementation of EPC
Advising Company M on licenses and permits and contract terms in connection with development of a blue hydrogen plant (in progress)
Advising on a project in which a consortium, which comprises Korean chemical company, engineering company and energy company, constructs an ammonia production facility in Malaysia to procure hydrogen energy (in progress)
Advising on a development project in which three developers in the southeast area’s off-shore wind power generation complex jointly construct an onshore and offshore private substations and install a submarine cable for the purpose of grid-connected offshore wind power generation complex that is being proceeded with offshore in Ulsan (in progress)
Advised Asset Manager E, a foreign real property investment fund, on its investment in relation to a rooftop solar power plant installation project for logistics warehouses and other domestic investment assets
Advised on sale of a solar power plant in Gunsan, Jeollabuk-do
Advised Company L on joint venture project for development of a hydrogen production plant
Advised on joint venture of power generation company M and Company S for development and operation of blue hydrogen production plant
Advised Company E, a foreign company specializing in environment and new&renewable energy on 2 projects of wind power plant in Samchuk, Gangwon
[Environment (Wastes), Safety and ESG]
Advised a Korean private equity fund managed by Company A on environmental permitting and regulatory compliance issues, including circular resources and waste management regulations, in connection with its acquisition of Company M, an aluminum recycling materials company (ongoing).
Advised a Korean company specializing in iron oxide, electronic materials and waste management on potential legal issues in acquiring environmental licenses and permits for its sale of three waste management companies (ongoing)
Advised a Korean private equity firm on potential legal issues in acquiring environmental licenses and permits for the acquisition of a bakery products manufacturer by another private equity managed by the aforementioned firm (ongoing)
Advised Company V, a Korean private equity management firm specializing in the environment business, on the sale of a waste landfill developer owned by Company V's waste landfill investment PE (ongoing)
Advised Company L on whether its investment in a hydrogen fuel cell power generation project meets ESG compliance standards
Advised Company G, a foreign real estate asset management firm, on participating in the competitive bidding for the acquisition of Company K, a waste incinerator and landfill operator in Ulsan, Korea (ongoing)
Advised Company V, a Korean PEF management firm specializing in the environment, on converting an SPC established by a PEF for waste sorting and investment in recycling facilities into a co-invested SPC with two Korean PEFs through additional investment, and expanding waste-related portfolio investments
Advised a PEF managed by Company H, a domestic private equity fund management firm, on its acquisition of five companies engaged in the processing and recycling of wastes (Changwoo RS Co., Ltd., Incheon Recycling Co., Ltd., Kieun RS Co., Ltd., Kieun Solution Co., Ltd., and Cheong Green Co., Ltd.)
Advised a PEF managed by Company W, a domestic private equity fund management firm, on environment licenses and permits related to its acquisition of controlling shares in Ancors Co., Ltd., a developer and manufacturer of cosmetic products, and its overseas subsidiaries
Advised Company V, a Korean PEF management firm specializing in the environment, on the project financing (PF) of a project to expand a SRF incinerator of Dongwoo Energy and Material Co., Ltd.
Advised on a project where a domestic environmental PEF manager, Company V, and energy company G establish a joint venture, contribute their respective waste collection, sorting, reprocessing, and recycling facilities to complete the waste recycling value chain cycle and advance plastic recycling (ongoing).
Advised Company V, a Korean PEF management company specializing in the environment, on its project to invest in the development of a waste landfill site in an industrial park in Chungcheongbuk-do, an inland province located in the center of Korea
Advised Company G, a Korean PEF management firm, on its acquisition of shares in Techcross Environmental Services, Bugok Environment and the Chinese subsidiary of Techcross Water and Energy, which are engaged in wastewater treatment facility operation and construction, and Korea Resource Environment, which is engaged in the recycling of waste synthetic resin
Advised IMM Private Equity and IMM Investment on their acquisition of Ecorbit
Advised on the sale of waste selecting and secondary recycling companies owned by Korea Investment Partners PE to the IMM Investment PEF
Advised a Korean decompressed refined oil manufacturing company on its acquisition of waste importing and transporting company
Advised an Australian private fund on its acquisition of all of the shares of a Korean food and drink waste disposal company Green Entecom
Advised Company K on a dispute and a new investment agreement regarding the replacement of the second-largest shareholder of its subsidiary, a waste landfill business entity (attracting new investment following the financial investor's exit).
Advising a domestic environmental PEF manager on its project for establishing a blind fund aiming to invest in six waste plastic recycling companies and for making equity investment therein
Advising Company D, a pressure-reduced refined oil manufacturer, on acquisition of a waste transportation and collection company and a temporary storage space
Advised Company G, which manufactures and extracts crude zinc oxide from steel mills’ steel dust, on how to respond to soil contamination found in the course of M&A
Advised Company H, a domestic PEF manager, on acquisition of four waste recycling companies and on reorganization of its business structure
Advised Company H, a domestic PEF manager, on sale of a company operating two medical waste incinerating facilities and one industrial waste incinerating facility
Advised Company K, a waste derived fuel producer, on its acquisition of Company D which also produces waste derived fuel
Advised Company L, a Korean PEF, on its acquisition of Company K, a waste derived fuel producer
Advised Company I, a Korean PEF, on its additional acquisition of interests in food waste treatment company
Advised a domestic environmental PEF manager on a project related to changes in the investment structure of a fuel cell power plant.
Advised a PEF specializing in environment on a project to acquire 2 wastewater treatment facilities in Dangjin, Chungnam
Advised a PEF specializing in environment on the development projects of waste landfills in Cheonan and Ulsan, ROK
[Private Equity & M&A]
Advised a PEF managed by Asset Manager S on its acquisition of a vinyl tile manufacturer.
Advised a PEF managed by a Korean investment securities company N on its purchase of class stock and new shares of Cookat Inc.
Advised H Life Insurance Company on a business transfer transaction involving 12 insurance agencies.
Advised Company V, a domestic PEF manager, on its acquisition of a quarry complex in Geochang.
Advised Company L, a domestic PEF manager, on its acquisition of an electrical product manufacturer, including transformers.
Advised Company K on its acquisition of new shares in a database development company.
Advised Company K on its business transfer of Between, an application for couples
Advised Company S on its acquisition of management rights in a concrete pile and steel bridge manufacturer (listed company).
[SOC, Infrastructure, Development]
Advised Company M on its data center development project

Awards/Recognition

2025-2026 Stand-out Lawyer, Thomson Reuters
2025-2026 Leading Lawyer, Projects & Energy, Chambers AP
2024-2025 Leading Lawyer, Project development, IFLR 1000
2023 Highly regarded, Project development, IFLR 1000 (Edition 33)
2023 Highly regarded, Project development, IFLR 1000 (Edition 32)

News/Publications

2026. 03. 26. Selection Eight Yulchon lawyers recognized as “Stand-out Lawyers 2026” by Thomson Reuters 2026. 03. 26.

2025. 12. 11. Selection Chambers Ranks Yulchon in Band 1 for Six Practice Areas 2025. 12. 11.

2025. 09. 11. Selection Yulchon’s M&A and Private Equity Practices Ranked Tier 1 by IFLR 1000 2025. 09. 11.

2025. 04. 01. Selection Thirteen Yulchon lawyers have been named as Thomson Reuters “Stand-out Lawyers 2025” 2025. 04. 01.

2025. 03. 14. Newsletters Special Act on the Promotion of Offshore Wind Power Development and Distribution 2025. 03. 14.

2024. 12. 18. Selection Yulchon Honored with Prestigious Awards 2024. 12. 18.

2024. 12. 12. Selection Chambers Ranks Yulchon in Band 1 for Five Practice Areas 2024. 12. 12.

2024. 09. 20. Selection Yulchon’s M&A Practice Ranked Tier 1 by IFLR 1000 2024. 09. 20.

2023. 07. 27. Selection Yulchon’s M&A Practice Ranked Tier 1 by IFLR 1000 2023. 07. 27.

2023. 06. 15. Deals & Cases Acquittal in Company F’s Violation of the Waste Control Act Case 2023. 06. 15.

2022. 09. 01. Selection Yulchon’s M&A Practice Ranked Tier 1 by IFLR 1000 2022. 09. 01.

2022. 07. 14. Newsletters ｢New Government’s Energy Policy Directions｣ - Nuclear Energy Ratio Increases to 30% 2022. 07. 14.

2022. 06. 02. Newsletters Hydrogen Act Amendment Bill Passed by the National Assembly Plenary Session 2022. 06. 02.

2022. 03. 18. Newsletters Summary of President-Elect Yoon's Policy Pledge & Impacts on Industries 2022. 03. 18.

2022. 01. 19. Newsletters Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy Issues Policy Goals for Adoption of Renewable Energy 2022. 01. 19.

2021. 08. 25. Selection Yulchon’s M&A Practice Ranked Tier 1 by IFLR 1000 2021. 08. 25.

2020. 10. 05. Selection Yulchon’s M&A Practice Ranked Tier 1 by IFLR 1000 2020. 10. 05.

법무법인(유한) 율촌 | Yulchon LLC

Introduction

Representative Matters

Awards/Recognition

News/Publications