Shin Hak-cheol, Vice Chairman of LG Chem, "Corporate Competitiveness... Must Be Based on Sustainability"

"10 Trillion Investment in Sustainable Business by 2025"

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Hyung-gil] Shin Hak-cheol, Vice Chairman of LG Chem, stated, "In the future business world, the criteria for measuring a company's competitiveness must be based on 'sustainability' alongside sales and operating profit."

On the 11th, through LG Chem's published '2021 Sustainability Management Report,' Vice Chairman Shin said, "The eco-friendly materials business, battery materials business, and global innovative new drug business are businesses that align with sustainability while maximizing the growth potential of existing businesses."

He added, "We plan to invest 10 trillion KRW in sustainability-based businesses by 2025," emphasizing, "We will strive to advance as a science company prepared with new growth engines based on sustainability, rather than a traditional chemical company."

Vice Chairman Shin also introduced, "In May, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, I emphasized carbon reduction, a core strategy leading LG Chem's sustainability," and explained, "We plan to communicate with customers and society through conducting Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), which quantitatively evaluates environmental impacts at each stage from raw material extraction to product manufacturing."

This year's report, marking its 16th edition, contains concrete actions to achieve net zero by 2050.

Last year, LG Chem's renewable energy usage amounted to 344,528 MWh, enough to supply approximately 260,000 people for a year. This is a significant increase from 1,760 MWh the previous year. Notably, in China, LG Chem signed a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) for renewable energy and operates the entire battery materials value chain in China using 100% renewable energy.

Additionally, the waste recycling rate increased by 7 percentage points from the previous year, reaching 85%. The company plans to convert energy at all global business sites to renewable energy by 2050.

In the social sector, investment in safety and health significantly increased. LG Chem's environmental safety investment in 2021 was 292.7 billion KRW, a 62.3% increase from 180.4 billion KRW the previous year.

Regarding governance, LG Chem established an ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) Committee to lay the foundation for long-term ESG management and set up an Internal Transactions Committee to ensure fairness in transactions and management transparency. The board also appointed two female outside directors this year to enhance diversity.

Vice Chairman Shin stated, "We are continuously striving to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion for LG Chem members worldwide and the communities around us," adding, "From a governance perspective, as the entity executing sustainable management, we will practice board-centered responsible management and promote continuous ESG risk management and opportunity expansion based on transparent stakeholder communication."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.