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Cho Hyun-min’s Hanjin Launches 'HJ Fuel Order' App… Why the Pivot Toward Business Diversification?

[비즈한국] It has been confirmed that Hanjin Co., Ltd.002320 (Hanjin) launched an application (app) called 'HJ Fuel Order' last March. HJ Fuel Order is an app linked to Hanjin's fuel business. While Hanjin has been operating a fuel business, its presence has remained relatively minor until now. The launch of the HJ Fuel Order app has led to speculation that the company is aiming to strengthen its fuel business.

Hanjin is led by President Cho Emily Lee (Korean name Cho Hyun-min, 42), the younger sister of Hanjin Group Chairman Cho Won-tae (49). Over the past few years, Hanjin has made various attempts to innovate, such as launching the game 'Parcel King Island' and sponsoring the film 'Daydream.' At the center of these efforts is President Cho Hyun-min. President Cho is known to be seeking ways to diversify logistics services. Hanjin’s various initiatives are interpreted as attempts to step outside its traditional logistics business to find new opportunities.

Testing the HJ Fuel Order App

Looking at the information for HJ Fuel Order on the Google Play Store, one can see features such as an in-app fuel ordering system. After downloading and launching the HJ Fuel Order app, an FMS (Fuel Management System) login screen appeared. There was no separate sign-up section. Without a login, it is impossible to navigate to the next page.

The HJ Fuel Order app appears to be accessible only with Hanjin’s approval. The app's information page states, "As a mobile app provided for easy fuel ordering from anywhere, we strictly manage fuel-ordering members through internal personnel," and adds, "To use this app, you must first contact a Hanjin representative."

HJ Fuel Order is likely aimed at the B2B (Business-to-Business) market rather than B2C (Business-to-Customer). Individual consumers typically visit standard gas stations and rarely order fuel in large quantities. The HJ Fuel Order app introduction screen also mentions "business sites" and "transportation companies."

It appears that the HJ Fuel Order app has not yet seen widespread adoption. According to the Google Play Store, the app has been downloaded "more than 10 times." HJ Fuel Order was released on March 4th and received an update 15 days later on March 19th. No further update records have been found since. Perhaps due to the low number of users, there are no reviews for the HJ Fuel Order app to be found.

What is Hanjin's Fuel Business?

Hanjin's business divisions are categorized into △Parcel delivery △Logistics △Global △Energy, and others. The energy division operates company-owned gas stations and supplies fuel through a dealership agreement with S-Oil. Recently, it has been expanding its business scope into areas such as electric vehicle (EV) charging and solar energy generation. Hanjin’s fuel business is expected to create synergy with its parcel and logistics operations, as fuel supply is essential to the nature of those businesses.

According to the quarterly report, Hanjin’s revenue for the first quarter of this year was 729.1 billion KRW. Of this, 47.5 billion KRW—approximately 6.51%—was generated by the energy division. While Hanjin’s core businesses are parcel delivery and logistics, the energy division accounts for a significant portion that cannot be overlooked.

Hanjin has been maintaining its revenue through the growth of its global and energy businesses while its parcel and logistics businesses have been sluggish. Hanjin’s revenue increased by 2.38% from 712.2 billion KRW in the first quarter of last year to 729.1 billion KRW in the first quarter of this year. However, during the same period, revenue from the parcel delivery division decreased by 1.76% from 341.3 billion KRW to 335.3 billion KRW, and logistics division revenue fell by 7.25% from 228.5 billion KRW to 212 billion KRW.

The future outlook for Hanjin’s logistics business is also considered to have high uncertainty. Choi Ko-woon, a researcher at Korea Investment & Securities, recently issued a "Neutral" investment opinion on Hanjin. Researcher Choi stated, "The logistics market has fallen back into chaos due to the impact of the U.S.-led tariff war."

If Hanjin’s declining performance becomes a reality, the evaluation of President Cho Hyun-min is bound to drop. Furthermore, public perception of President Cho is not entirely positive. In the past, she was embroiled in an "abuse of power" controversy after throwing a water cup at an advertising agency employee. Additionally, despite her U.S. citizenship, she served as an internal director at Jin Air, leading to sanctions from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. Under current law, companies with foreign nationals registered as executives cannot hold aviation business licenses. Moreover, during the "nut rage" incident involving her older sister, former Korean Air Vice President Cho Hyun-ah, President Cho caused further controversy by sending an email to employees blaming "the faults of all employees." Against this backdrop, poor financial results could severely impact her leadership.

Amid this atmosphere, the importance of Hanjin’s energy division is rising. Hanjin is stepping up efforts to strengthen its energy business by expanding the installation of EV chargers, primarily at parcel terminals where demand for EV charging is high. Hanjin currently operates 14 EV charging hubs nationwide.

Speculation is growing that Hanjin’s launch of the HJ Fuel Order app is also an attempt to strengthen its energy business. By utilizing the HJ Fuel Order app, the company could expect benefits such as easier customer management and the simplification of fuel supply procedures. However, Hanjin did not respond to inquiries regarding the HJ Fuel Order app and the future of its fuel business.