Under the influence of legal disputes and management disagreements, the U.S.-led key mineral supply chain restructuring plan is facing uncertainty. According to several Korean media reports on 22, the Tennessee smelting plant project, which is a benchmark project for South Korea-U.S. mineral strategic cooperation—the Korean zinc smelting giant “Gorea Lead” is advancing in the U.S., is facing severe delay risks due to intense equity and management rights disputes deep within the company, which are embroiled in judicial procedures.
Previously, the project had been highly anticipated. The U.S. Department of Commerce recently confirmed a collaboration with Golia lead to build a $ 7.4 billion smelting plant in Tennessee to address the growing supply chain risks of key materials from automotive to military industries. United States Department of Commerce Lutnick even described the agreement on social media as “a major victory for the United States.” White House officials said the United States had not built such a large zinc smelting plant since the 1970s.
However, just a few days after the announcement, the project was forced to be suspended due to legal conflicts. According to Korea‘s Korea Daily, the core cooperation structure of the Tennessee smelting plant project is a joint venture jointly established by Gorea Lead and the U.S. Department of Defense and others, Crucible JV. The U.S. holds 40.1% of the voting rights and is the largest shareholder, responsible for licensing, raw material supply, and construction project management. The smelting plant itself is operated independently by Gorea Lead with 100% ownership.
The focus of the case is focused on the third-party-directed capital increase plan to be carried out on December 26th. The current chairman of Korea Lead, Choi Yun-fan, planned to acquire a 10% stake in Korea Lead from Crucible JV on December 26th through the issuance of new shares aimed at the joint venture company. However, this financing plan encountered strong resistance from the company‘s largest shareholder alliance, Yifeng and MBK. Yifeng and MBK petitioned the court for a restraining order, accusing Choi of acting as an “abnormal operation” to dilute rival equity and consolidate operating rights before the final joint venture agreement was signed.
Korea‘s Korea Daily reported on the 17th that the U.S. was “surprised” that Korea lead has operated independently for more than 50 years, “without being affected by the Chinese supply chain.” The report quoted senior officials at Korea lead as saying, “They ignored the time difference and even called in the early hours of the morning to push negotiations, making it hard to believe they were U.S. civil servants. Most of the practical personnel sitting at the negotiating table came from investment banks such as Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase, and the speed of decision making was astonishing.”
The legal dispute between the two sides is expected to continue for some time, according to the Korean media. The Korea Fair Trade Commission is investigating the illegality of the circular funding chain, and the Korean prosecution is also investigating the related cases. The investment progress of the project may inevitably suffer delays.