KCC Publishes Sustainability Report Outlining ESG Strategic Directions

ESG 11 Strategic Tasks Set
Expansion of ESG Activities Including Establishment of Dedicated IR Team

On the 3rd, KCC announced the publication of its tenth Sustainability Report, which contains the achievements of its sustainable management activities throughout 2023 and the directions to pursue in the future.

Since first publishing the ‘Sustainability Report’ based on ISO26000 in 2015, KCC has continued to publish the report annually to transparently disclose its sustainable management strategies, goals, and achievements to all stakeholders and to present a vision for the future.

Based on the ‘ESG Orientation’ of ‘Realizing Sustainable Development through Strengthening ESG Management,’ KCC has set strategic directions of ▲ KCC in harmony with the environment ▲ KCC creating social value ▲ KCC that is transparent and trusted, along with 11 strategic tasks aligned with these directions, to continue systematic and ongoing ESG activities.

This year’s Sustainability Report also clearly outlined KCC’s ESG activities by detailing the individual progress and achievements of the 11 strategic tasks according to the strategic directions, while clarifying the path forward.

First, KCC established the ‘2050 Carbon Neutral Roadmap,’ setting a goal to reduce carbon emissions by 15% by 2030 compared to 2018 levels and achieve 100% reduction by 2050, continuing its carbon reduction efforts. To achieve this roadmap, KCC is focusing on improving equipment efficiency and conversion, introducing eco-friendly renewable energy, and developing and applying carbon-free technologies.

In particular, last year, KCC calculated and reported Scope 3 (other indirect greenhouse gas emissions) for the first time in addition to the previously calculated and managed Scope 1 (direct greenhouse gas emissions) and Scope 2 (indirect greenhouse gas emissions). Although Scope 3 is not currently mandatory, KCC proactively expanded the scope of its greenhouse gas management.

Alongside environmental, safety, and quality management activities, KCC continues efforts to protect investors’ rights and operate transparent governance. Starting in 2023, KCC adopted a ‘dividend-first, investment-later’ approach, allowing investors to decide on investments after confirming dividends, thereby increasing investor interest and trust. An IR-dedicated organization and an IR-exclusive website were established to provide real-time information to investors.

Furthermore, to enhance its global sustainability reporting capabilities, KCC prepared the EU’s ESRS (European Sustainability Reporting Standards) index (INDEX, reference data) for the first time on a trial basis in this Sustainability Report. ESRS is a management tool for implementing the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), specifying and regulating the information companies must disclose regarding sustainability.