LG Chem empowers shared growth with partners with eye on the environment
With geopolitical tensions and the Iran war injecting volatility into oil prices, LG Chem is striving to ease the burden on small- and medium-sized enterprises in the naphtha crude oil sector.
An employee at Buseong Chemical uses a mobile stretch wrapper supported by LG Chem.LG CHEM
With geopolitical tensions and the Iran war injecting volatility into oil prices, LG Chem is striving to ease the burden on small- and medium-sized enterprises in the naphtha crude oil sector.
The company is working with the government to temporarily slash supply prices to companies that produce essential materials such as plastics and packaging, with discounts of 100,000 won to 200,000 won ($75 to $145) per ton.
The move aims to ease the financial strain on downstream customers while also securing the supply of key materials and tempering inflation.
To ensure transparency and promote a fair trade culture, LG Chem is implementing four guidelines from the Fair Trade Commission designed to shield business partners from arbitrary demands.
As part of its ongoing plan, the company is rolling out a financial aid package totaling 206.1 billion won as of last year, while also supporting partners with operational funds through a low-interest growth scheme, the Shared Growth Fund, totaling around 106.1 billion won. Shinhan Bank has cooperated with the project to offer an environmental, social and governance (ESG) low-interest loan to promote climate resilience and green material innovation.
The company is continuously refining the payment conditions for its subcontractors, increasing remittances to three times a month and disbursing 100 percent in cash within 10 days.
LG Chem also provides free management enhancement programs with a 1 billion won annual shared growth fund to address budget and staffing constraints among its small and medium partners.
Since 2012, LG Chem has launched an initiative to identify energy-saving opportunities and fund the decarbonization of machinery free of charge, expanding its scope to include renewable energy to foster a culture of greenhouse gas reduction.
Furthermore, LG Chem is taking full action on Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) across partners' products while delivering full-cycle decarbonization consulting and supporting internal evaluation systems to ensure timely responses to ESG regulations and requirements.
In addition, LG Chem guides suppliers to obtain safety and welfare certifications to sustain voluntary safety governance, improve productivity and enhance employee welfare to mitigate the risk of major workplace incidents.
The company supports the protection of overall technology assets through trade secret verification and tech-safeguard programs, as well as security vouchers and joint patent filings, while delivering nearly 4,000 free testing and analysis sessions from its research and development campus and customer solutions center to alleviate equipment bottlenecks. To reduce risks associated with deficient or outdated laboratory infrastructure, LG Chem also supports suppliers with complimentary testing equipment.
The company also supports upcoming talent by helping partners secure top-tier job seekers and easing labor costs to tackle youth unemployment, providing a free online training portal as well as courses on second languages, information technology, finance, literature and leadership.
LG Chem actively fosters communication among partners by maintaining official communication channels, participating in national procurement expos and broadening the spectrum of shared growth.
Meanwhile, LG Chem earned an “Excellent” rating on the Korea Commission for Corporate Partnership’s Shared Growth Index for 10 straight years.
