SK ecoplant, the engineering and construction unit of South Korean conglomerate SK group, has partnered with Malaysia’s state-operated waste management firm Cenviro to expand its environmental business in the global market.

SK ecoplant inked a share purchase agreement on Friday with Malaysian sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional to acquire 30 percent of Cenviro shares. The Malaysian waste management company is wholly owned by Khazanah Nasional.

Cenviro built Malaysia’s first integrated waste management center back in 1998, and currently operates the country’s only designated waste landfill and incineration plant. On the back of Malaysia’s fast growing population and economy, Cenviro logged $120 million in sales in 2021.

The latest share purchase is part of SK ecoplant’s investments to accelerate its bolt-on strategy and foray into North American and European markets, according to the company. Before the Malaysian deal, SK signed a deal to acquire Singapore’s electronic waste management firm TES in February.

“On the basis of this strategic partnership, we will establish Malaysia as a foothold for the Southeast Asian environmental market, expanding business into Singapore and Indonesia,” said an SK ecoplant offical.

The company has been expanding its eco-friendly business since 2020, taking over nine environment-related Korean enterprises, the company said.

“Choosing SK ecoplant as a strategic partner in an open bid with participation from global firms demonstrates SK ecoplant’s competitiveness in environmental operations,” said Park Kyung-il, chief executive officer of the company.

“As Korea’s No.1 environment-related enterprise, SK ecoplant will accumulate new technology and methods of approach to export platforms and solutions that can be applied to environmental operations,” he added.

By Lee Seung-ku (seungku99@heraldcorp.com)management">seungku99@heraldcorp.com)