[New Year's Address] Park Chan-gu, Chairman of Kumho Petrochemical, "This Year Focused on Strengthening ESG Capabilities and Discovering New Businesses"

▲Park Chan-gu, Chairman of Kumho Petrochemical Group

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] Park Chan-gu, Chairman of Kumho Petrochemical, stated, "In 2021, we will focus on strengthening our 'ESG' capabilities and continue to discover new businesses for the group's future growth."

In his New Year's address on the 4th, Chairman Park said, "This year is a year to lay the foundation for a new half-century of sustainable corporate growth."

Chairman Park urged, "Please strive to strengthen capabilities in 'ESG,' which stands for Environmental, Social Responsibility, and Governance," adding, "Companies can no longer grow by relying solely on the past approach of considering only financial performance that creates economic value."

He continued, "ESG, once regarded merely as social contribution, is now becoming a key evaluation criterion for domestic and international investors and pension funds when assessing companies, thereby increasing its legitimacy as a measure of sustainable management," and requested, "All employees should approach their work with the mindset that ESG is 'not an option but a necessity' for sustainable growth."

Chairman Park also expressed his determination to discover new businesses. He emphasized, "In a rapidly changing business environment, companies that fail to timely transform their businesses are bound to decline," adding, "For the next 50 years, we must take a long-term perspective and actively seek new growth momentum."

Meanwhile, despite the adverse conditions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic last year, Kumho Petrochemical further strengthened its competitiveness and turned the crisis into an opportunity. As part of focusing and strengthening capabilities as a petrochemical specialist group, it sold its electronic materials division. Instead, with the increased demand for hygienic gloves due to COVID-19, it expanded NB latex production capacity by an additional 60,000 tons. This year, it plans to further expand NB latex capacity by 70,000 tons to secure competitive advantage and expand the market.