Chair Choi Yoon-beom of Korea Zinc will attend the Davos Forum (World Economic Forum (WEF) 2026 annual meeting) in January next year. Choi is expected to meet U.S. business figures to discuss cooperation on the "Tennessee smelter construction project," among other issues.
According to the industry on the 25th, Choi decided to attend the Davos Forum to be held in Davos, Switzerland, from Jan. 19 to 23 next year. Founded in 1971, the Davos Forum is an international private conference where government official from major countries, prominent businesspeople, and scholars discuss and study the global economy. Next year's theme is "A spirit of dialogue."
A Korea Zinc official said, "We have scheduled the agenda to attend next year's Davos Forum," and added, "After first attending in 2024, we planned to keep going, but could not this year in January due to the extraordinary shareholders meeting, among other reasons."
At this Davos Forum, Choi is expected to meet key U.S. economic figures to discuss the construction of the U.S. smelter. About 3,000 people, including U.S. President Donald Trump, leaders of major countries, and global corporations figures, are expected to attend.
Attention is on whether there will be a reunion with U.S. Commerce Minister Howard Lutnick. It is not yet known whether Minister Lutnick will attend the forum.
Minister Lutnick previously asked for Choi's attendance, alongside Samsung Electronics Chair Lee Jae-yong, SK Group Chair Chey Tae-won, Hyundai Motor Group Chair Chung Eui-sun, and LG Group Chair Koo Kwang-mo, at the business roundtable of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit held in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang, in October. It is known that they discussed the U.S. smelter construction there.
Minister Lutnick strongly welcomed Korea Zinc after it released the U.S. smelter construction project. Referring to the project, he said it was "a big win for the United States," adding it was "a groundbreaking deal (transaction) that will change the landscape of America's critical minerals."
Meanwhile, Korea Zinc announced on the 15th that it would push a plan to build a smelter in Clarksville, Tennessee, with a total investment of 10.95 trillion won together with the U.S. government and local investors. Regarding investment for the smelter construction, Young Poong and MBK Partners filed for an "injunction to prohibit new share issuance" in court over transferring equity to the U.S. government through a "third-party allotment paid-in capital increase," but it was dismissed on the 24th.