SK Inno "Social Value -200 Billion KRW Due to COVID-19 Impact"

"Impact of COVID-19 on Decreased Dividends and Tax Payments"

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] SK Innovation announced on the 3rd that the social value (SV) it created last year was minus 219.2 billion KRW, down 390.8 billion KRW from the 171.7 billion KRW recorded in 2019.

SK Group affiliates measure the social value they create annually and announce the results converted into monetary amounts. The main categories are ▲ business social performance covering eco-friendly products and services, labor, win-win growth, and environmental areas ▲ social contribution social performance measuring social contribution, donations, volunteer activities, etc. ▲ and economic indirect contribution performance evaluating employment, dividends, tax payments, and other areas.

The economic indirect contribution performance was measured at 748.4 billion KRW, down about 470 billion KRW from the previous year, negatively affecting the overall performance.

SK Innovation posted a record loss of 2.5688 trillion KRW last year due to the impact of COVID-19, which led to no shareholder dividends and reduced tax payments, resulting in a decrease in economic indirect contribution performance.

Business social performance recorded minus 1.005 trillion KRW, an improvement of 118.4 billion KRW from the previous year, despite negative value in the environmental sector due to the nature of the refining business, thanks to efforts such as installing new facilities to reduce air pollutants.

In social contribution social performance, the company explained that it achieved a total performance of 37.4 billion KRW through the development of various social contribution programs.

Kim Jun, the CEO, stated, “The negative social value measured in 2020 was directly caused by the deterioration of business performance due to COVID-19,” and added, "We will promptly shift SK Innovation’s portfolio to focus on Green Energy & Materials and accelerate ESG management to dramatically increase social value performance in 2021."