LG Energy Solution sets out new ESG vision, 'We CHARGE'

LG Energy Solution President and CEO Kim Jong-hyun

LG Energy Solution on Sunday announced its new environmental, social and governance vision, pledging to source electricity generated 100 percent by renewables at all its business sites by 2030 and go carbon neutral by 2050.

According to the world’s leading electric vehicle battery manufacturer, it will gradually reduce carbon emissions from its 2019 level of 960,000m metric tons to zero by 2050.

Also, the company aims to accomplish RE100 by 2030, which is 20 years ahead of the global initiative’s timeline to source electricity generated 100 percent by renewables such as solar and wind power. The firm has already transitioned to 100 percent renewables at its business site in Poland and the US.

Above all, LG Energy Solution said it would establish a closed-loop recycling system to minimize the environmental contamination of its batteries. The system will be established by 2025 and encompass the entire life cycle of batteries from raw materials supply to production, consumption and disposal.

In China, LG Energy Solution has already established a localized closed-loop system where valuable metals are extracted from defective batteries and put back into the production of cathode materials. The battery manufacturer plans to extend system at its overseas operations in the US, Europe and in Korea.

Earlier this year, Ultium Cells, a joint venture between LG Energy Solution and General Motors, has teamed up with Canadian lithium-ion battery recycling firm Li-Cycle to recycle raw materials from disposed EV battery cells such as nickel cobalt, lithium and aluminum.

“This year signals the beginning of LG Energy Solution’s ESG efforts and we will accelerate the ESG management to drastically improve people’s lives,” LG Energy Solution President and CEO Kim Jong-hyun said, proclaiming the “We CHARGE toward a better future” vision.

CHARGE is an abbreviation of the firm’s key agendas: C for climate action and circular economy; H for human value management; A for advanced economic history; R for responsible and impactful business; G for good governance of key enablers; and E for ESG disclosure and communication.

By Kim Byung-wook(kbw@heraldcorp.com)