Lotte Chemical Expands EOA Specialty Materials for Construction Use

EOA Expansion by 100,000 Tons... Annual Capacity Increased to 330,000 Tons
Commercial Production Starts in January at Yeosu Plant

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] Lotte Chemical has expanded the production line of EOA (ethylene oxide derivative), a specialty material for construction, at its Yeosu plant.

EOA, produced from ethylene as a raw material, is the raw material for concrete admixtures used in the construction of large structures such as high-rise buildings, bridges, and dams. When concrete admixtures made from EOA are added to concrete, water usage is reduced by 30% compared to conventional methods, and the strength of the concrete is increased. Additionally, it maintains the fluidity of the concrete, enabling long-distance transportation, making it a high value-added specialty material.

The expanded EOA plant was constructed within Yeosu Plant 4 with an investment of 120 billion KRW and has an annual production capacity of 100,000 tons. Construction began in August 2019, and commercial production started in January this year. Lotte Chemical's existing EOA production capacity totals 230,000 tons annually, including 130,000 tons at the Yeosu plant, 50,000 tons at the Daesan plant, and 50,000 tons at the Jiaxing plant in China. With this expansion at the Yeosu plant, the capacity has increased to 330,000 tons.

The new EOA plant is built as a smart factory and operates based on an automated control system. It enables real-time monitoring and control of the entire process, from raw and auxiliary material management to product production and storage. Equipment that automatically and quantitatively injects catalysts, which previously took 4 to 5 hours daily manually, has been introduced, improving productivity and uniformity of quality.

Additionally, by establishing a system based on equipment data, the plant can identify, analyze, and address risks or abnormalities in the process, thereby enhancing quality and safety management in the production environment and is expected to reduce maintenance and repair costs.

Hwang Jin-gu, head of the Basic Materials Business, stated, "EOA is a high value-added product with an expected global annual demand growth of over 5%. We will continue to strengthen our business competitiveness through stable market supply via vertical integration of raw materials and products and by developing products tailored to customer applications."

Lotte Chemical possesses excellent quality and high-purity uniform EOA production capabilities through continuous research and production line expansion and has proactively developed EOA products for concrete admixtures with various uses and characteristics. Through this expansion, Lotte Chemical plans to further solidify its position as the number one domestic and second-largest global market share holder in the EOA market.