Lotte Chemical unveiled a strategy to restructure its basic chemicals business and shift its portfolio toward four growth pillars. The company said on Thursday that CEO Lee Young-joon (이영준) held a CEO Investor Meeting on April 16 at NH Financial Tower in Yeouido, Seoul, for major domestic institutional investors.

The meeting presented the status of petrochemical restructuring at Daesan and Yeosu and the direction of future strategy. For basic chemicals, the focus is on improving the financial and profit-and-loss structure through restructuring. Lotte Chemical Daesan is pursuing a merger with HD Hyundai Chemical, a first in South Korea’s petrochemical industry, while Yeosu has submitted its final restructuring plan to the government and is awaiting an approval decision. The company plans to reinvest investment capacity secured through the restructuring into high value-added, high-growth businesses to shift to a portfolio focused on qualitative growth.

For advanced materials, one of the four growth pillars, the company will expand around its functional compounding business. Lotte Engineering Plastics will begin full operations in the second half of this year at a compounding plant with annual capacity of 500,000 tons. On that basis, it plans to expand product lines such as Super EP into advanced industries including physical AI and aerospace.

For specialty chemicals, it will expand capacity for high value-added food and pharmaceutical materials and gradually grow its semiconductor chemicals business centred on TMAC and TMAH. For battery materials, it will increase the share of circuit foil for AI and high-end battery foil products to strengthen a high value-added portfolio. In hydrogen energy, joint venture Lotte SK Enerroot has started commercial operations of Ulsan Hydrogen Power No. 1, and a total of 80 MW will be in operation by the end of this year.

For ammonia, it will lead a business centred on clean ammonia by using Lotte Fine Chemical’s infrastructure and distribution network, and will move to pre-empt the domestic market through the Daesan hydrogen shipment centre in operation since November last year. Lee said, "In basic chemicals, we will reinforce competitiveness through rationalisation based on pre-emptive business restructuring, and build up the four growth pillars of advanced materials, specialty chemicals, battery materials and hydrogen energy to complete a balanced portfolio."