SK Chemicals Partners with Seoul City to Recycle Discarded Banners and Build Circular Resource System

Full-scale Recycling of Discarded Banners from the 2026 Local Elections Planned
SK Chemicals and Seoul Metropolitan Government Sign MOU
Aiming for a 100% Circular Resource System by Next Year

On August 5, SK Chemicals announced that it will sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Seoul Metropolitan Government to promote the circular use of discarded banners.

This agreement, scheduled for August 6, marks the company’s second such partnership this year, following last month’s agreement with the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and five local governments. SK Chemicals also signed a resource recycling agreement for discarded banners with Gunsan City in August last year. Under the new agreement, the Seoul Metropolitan Government will establish a collection system for discarded banners centered around the Seoul Urban Metal Recovery Center (SR Center), and supply the collected banners to SK Chemicals.

SK Chemicals Pangyo Headquarters view. Courtesy of SK Chemicals

SK Chemicals plans to regenerate the supplied discarded banners into high-value-added resources through both mechanical recycling (compounding) and chemical recycling technologies. Chemical recycling involves breaking down waste plastics at the molecular level and restoring them to the quality of conventional petroleum-based raw materials. This technology enables the realization of a "closed loop" system, where discarded banners can be reborn as new banners.

Starting in the second half of this year, the Seoul Metropolitan Government and SK Chemicals will begin collecting and supplying discarded banners, aiming to establish a 100% resource recycling system by next year. This year, the initiative will start in Yongsan District and gradually expand to other districts. By 2026, banners discarded during the local elections will also be included in the recycling program. According to the Ministry of Environment, approximately 6,000 tons of discarded banners are generated annually, but 70% of them are either landfilled or incinerated, continuously raising environmental concerns such as carbon emissions.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government expects that this agreement will enable the establishment of a sustainable circular resource system for discarded banners. An official from the Seoul Metropolitan Government stated, "If the technology to turn discarded banners back into banners is realized, it will make it possible to repeatedly recycle waste as a resource, offering a fundamental solution to the problem of discarded banners."

Ahn Jae-hyun, CEO of SK Chemicals, said, "Our circular recycling technology will be a key to solving the difficult challenge of reducing waste, including discarded banners," and added, "Through collaboration with local governments such as the Seoul Metropolitan Government and other stakeholders, we will expand the circular resource infrastructure and quickly establish a virtuous cycle structure that recycles waste from various sectors into resources."

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