South Korean multi-industry company Lotte Group revealed its aim for carbon neutrality goals by 2030. In accordance with the global ESG trend, Lotte Group announced they would incorporate eco-friendly strategies into their chemical business units. The four chemical subsidiaries include Lotte Chemical, Lotte Precision Chemical, Lotte Aluminum, and Lotte BP Chemicals. Aside from being Lotte’s largest chemical subsidiary, Lotte Chemical is one of the top Korean chemical companies along with LG Chem.
Lotte Group revealed the Green Promise 2030, an eco-friendly business policy in which the company would invest KRW 5.2 trillion for promoting carbon-neutral growth by 2030. Under the Green Promise 2030, Lotte Group’s chemical subsidiaries would upgrade their green business regulations and update their client requirements. The chemical business units would also concentrate on increasing sales of eco-friendly products and optimizing material recycling. Following these strategies, their carbon emissions would lessen their environmental impact and their waste systems would improve. In addition, the chemical subsidiaries’ accumulated revenue could reach KRW 6 trillion from the green manufacture of their products.
“2021 would mark the starting point of environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) management for Lotte’s chemical businesses,” said Kim Gyo-hyun, Lotte Chemical Corporation’s chief executive and president. “This year our focus will be on establishing sustainable and eco-friendly business strategies and executing core tasks.”
To achieve its goal of selling one million tons of recycled material by 2030, Lotte would utilize post-consumer recycling solutions. In this technology, Lotte Group’s chemical companies would collect and reprocess plastics from household and commercial packaging. Even with Lotte’s growing business operations, Lotte Chemical will retain its greenhouse gas emissions at 2019 levels until 2030.
South Korean Companies and Green Business Strategies
Moreover, petrochemical companies are handling environmental issues on waste and air pollution from their facilities. For the waste reduction goal completion, Lotte and their chemical subsidiaries would cut down their factory emissions by 50 percent. Through reconditioning their production facilities, the companies will minimize the discharge of toxic substances in their air and water waste.
Among Korean chemical firms, Lotte Group’s Green Promise 2030 is one of the latest long-term initiatives incorporating ESG. Currently, Korean businesses are establishing company-wide environmental-friendly policies in their management and operations. In response to climate change, companies such as LG Chem, Hanwha, and POSCO have assimilated green regulations and renewable energy systems into their business activities.
