en.Wedoany.com Reported - South Korea's Lotte Chemical is advancing the reorganization of its petrochemical business under the Special Act on the Promotion of Corporate Vitality. This involves spinning off its Daesan plant and merging it with HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Chemical to establish a 50:50 joint venture. This move aims to address oversupply and accelerate the shift towards high-value-added materials. The merger is scheduled for completion in September 2026, with the contract signed in June and both parties investing 600 billion won each.
Through production integration and the shutdown of a 1.1 million-ton cracker, the company expects to achieve vertical integration from raw material procurement to final products, thereby enhancing operational efficiency and manufacturing cost competitiveness. Lotte Chemical also submitted an additional restructuring plan in December 2025 at the Yeosu Industrial Complex, involving facility integration with Hanwha Solutions, DL Chemical, and Yeochun NCC. A detailed plan was submitted on March 20 to accelerate the improvement of business fundamentals.
As part of its transformation, Lotte Chemical plans to increase the proportion of functional materials to over 60% by 2030, strengthening its chemical business portfolio and evolving into a specialty chemicals company. Its subsidiary, Lotte Engineering Plastics, is constructing a compounding plant with an annual capacity of 500,000 tons in the Yulchon Industrial Complex, South Jeolla Province. Some production lines are already operational, with the entire facility expected to be completed in the second half of 2026. It will supply high-performance materials for the mobility and IT industries and plans to produce high-performance products for physical artificial intelligence and aerospace applications.
Lotte SK Enerroot began operating a 20MW hydrogen fuel cell power plant in Ulsan in June 2025 and plans to build four additional plants by the end of 2026, stably supplying a total of 80MW of power. Lotte Air Liquide Enerhi completed South Korea's largest 450bar high-pressure hydrogen transportation center in Daesan, South Chungcheong Province, which commenced commercial operations in November 2025. Its daily hydrogen production can supply 4,200 passenger cars or 1,100 hydrogen buses.
Lotte Energy Materials, leveraging its high-end copper foil and battery material technologies, supplies core materials to the battery, energy storage system, AI, and semiconductor industries. It is increasing the supply of high-value-added products for AI through its domestic circuit foil production base. Handuck Chemical, a joint venture between Lotte Chemical and Japan's Tokuyama Corporation, based on its semiconductor developer (TMAH) manufacturing capabilities, plans to build an additional production facility of approximately 9,800 pyeong in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, to expand its market position.
Lotte Chemical stated, "We will secure fundamental competitiveness through business structure rationalization and accelerate our expansion into a high-value-added specialty chemicals company." This restructuring and merger are key steps for the company to address industry challenges and enhance competitiveness, aligning with the adjustment trends in South Korea's petrochemical industry.
This article is compiled by Wedoany. All AI citations must indicate the source as "Wedoany". If there is any infringement or other issues, please notify us promptly, and we will modify or delete it accordingly. Email: news@wedoany.com
