Lotte Chemical "10 Trillion Investment in Battery and Hydrogen Business"... Aiming for 50 Trillion Sales by 2030 (Comprehensive)

'Lotke' Leading Green Businesses Like Hydrogen and Batteries
Targeting 50 Trillion Won in Sales... Over 10 Trillion Won Investment Planned

Kim Gyo-hyun, Vice Chairman of Lotte Chemical, is speaking at the Vision 2030 announcement press conference held on the 19th at Lotte World Tower in Jamsil, Songpa-gu, Seoul. Photo by Lotte Chemical

[Asia Economy Reporter Donghoon Jeong] "Lotte Chemical has concluded that expanding future value must go hand in hand with solving global issues. We will redefine our 2030 vision to focus on carbon reduction growth and achieving 50 trillion KRW in sales by 2030."

Lotte Chemical is set to actively enter businesses such as battery materials and hydrogen. This marks a declaration of transformation from a petrochemical company to a comprehensive chemical company in the decarbonization era. Kim Kyohyun, Vice Chairman in charge of the chemical division at Lotte Group, presented the '2030 Vision' with financial goals of achieving 50 trillion KRW in sales by 2030 and non-financial goals centered on carbon reduction growth.

Vision 2030: Carbon Reduction Growth and 50 Trillion KRW Sales Target

At the future vision announcement ceremony held on the 19th at Lotte World Tower in Jamsil, Songpa-gu, Seoul, Vice Chairman Kim said, "In the pandemic era, fundamental changes are required for chemical companies due to the carbon neutrality trend and shifts in market dynamics. We aim to announce a new management paradigm that realizes sustainable development and eco-friendly values, proactively responding to stakeholder demands and global regulations."

The ceremony was attended by Hwang Jingu, Head of Basic Materials Business and Hydrogen Energy Business Unit, Lee Youngjun, Head of Advanced Materials Business and Battery Materials Business Unit, and Kim Yeonseop, Head of ESG (Environment, Social, Governance) Management Headquarters.

Through this announcement, Lotte Chemical unveiled a new corporate vision and slogan, "Every Step for GREEN," reflecting its goal to advance toward a prosperous and green world with leading technology. The '2030 Vision' was also introduced, setting financial goals of achieving 50 trillion KRW in sales and non-financial goals of carbon reduction growth by 2030.

Vice Chairman Kim stated, "As a growth strategy to achieve the 2030 Vision, we will expand general petrochemical businesses and high value-added specialty businesses, and restructure our portfolio by expanding green businesses such as hydrogen energy, battery materials, recycling, and bioplastics. We will achieve carbon reduction growth through energy efficiency improvements, expanded application of carbon capture utilization (CCU) technology, and mid- to long-term investments including the introduction of renewable energy."

Lotte Chemical announced Vision 2030 at a press conference held on the 19th at Lotte World Tower in Jamsil, Songpa-gu, Seoul. From the left in the photo are Jin-gu Hwang, Head of Basic Materials Business and Director of Hydrogen Energy Business Division; Kyo-hyun Kim, Vice Chairman (Head of Lotte Group's Chemical Division); and Young-jun Lee, Head of Advanced Materials Business and Director of Battery Materials Business Division, posing for a commemorative photo. Photo by Lotte Chemical

To achieve 50 trillion KRW in sales by 2030, Lotte Chemical plans to increase petrochemical business sales from 11 trillion KRW last year to 20 trillion KRW by diversifying regions and enhancing product competitiveness. The high value-added specialty business aims to grow from 7 trillion KRW to 18 trillion KRW by expanding existing product lines, increasing value in general business products, and entering new sectors such as bio raw materials and eco-friendly materials. The green business is planned to grow to a total sales scale of 12 trillion KRW, including 5 trillion KRW in hydrogen energy, 5 trillion KRW in battery materials, and 2 trillion KRW in recycling and bioplastics.

Earlier in March, Lotte Chemical established new organizations related to hydrogen and battery materials. The newly formed Hydrogen Energy Business Unit is led by Hwang Jingu, Head of Basic Materials Business, and the Battery Materials Business Unit is headed by Lee Youngjun, Head of Advanced Materials Business. Each unit is seeking to secure a leading position in the hydrogen market and expand into battery and high value-added materials businesses through systematic new business development and investment execution.

4 Trillion KRW Investment in Battery and 6 Trillion KRW in Hydrogen... Achieving 'Green Growth'

Lotte Chemical plans to invest about 60% of its battery materials business investment funds in the United States. The company intends to build battery materials factories near battery manufacturing plants in the U.S. and supply materials stably to battery manufacturers. The company is currently reviewing the construction of factories for cathode foil and electrolyte materials, which are battery materials.

Lee Youngjun, Head of Battery Materials Business Unit (Head of Advanced Materials Business), said, "We will rapidly expand our business base through various methods such as mergers and acquisitions (M&A) of technology-holding companies, joint ventures, and collaboration among affiliates. At the same time, we will actively target the U.S. battery market, which has high import dependence and promising profitability." Regarding the possibility of a physical division of the battery materials business, Lee responded, "Currently, we are prioritizing investments and optimizing capabilities, so it is not yet the stage to discuss physical division."

In the hydrogen energy business, Lotte Chemical plans to invest a total of 6 trillion KRW by 2030 to produce 1.2 million tons of clean hydrogen, distribute and utilize it, and achieve annual sales of 5 trillion KRW. Additionally, the company plans to establish a joint venture with strategic partners within the year to promote hydrogen charging station and power generation businesses, and expand collaboration with Lotte Group affiliates. Hwang Jingu, Head of Hydrogen Energy Business Unit (Head of Basic Materials Business), said, "Leveraging Lotte Chemical's network, investment capacity, and abundant global project experience, we will proactively build infrastructure from production facility investment to transportation and distribution, securing leadership in the domestic hydrogen industry."

Lotte Chemical plans to invest a total of 1 trillion KRW in the recycling and bioplastics materials business by 2030 to expand the business scale to over 1 million tons.