Kolon Group to invest $3.2 bn in advanced materials, green energy, life science

[Source: Kolon Group]

South Korea’s Kolon Group has pledged to invest 4 trillion won ($3.2 billion) to enhance its six mainstay businesses including advanced materials, green energy and life science for the next five years, joining the multibillion-dollar investment pledges by the country’s top conglomerates during the term of President Yoon Suk-yeol.

Kolon Group announced its future investment and job creation scheme during the One & Only committee meeting attended by the heads of its affiliated companies on Monday.

Uplifted by the news, shares of Kolon Corp., the holding entity of the conglomerate, rose 2.62 percent to trade at 27,450 won in Seoul trading at 2:01 p.m. Monday.

Of the new capex, the largest 1.7 trillion won will be devoted to strengthening its global competitiveness in the advanced materials business. The group plans to ramp up its annual production capacity of aramid fibers for network cables and electric vehicles and expand business of advanced new materials for secondary batteries.

Another 900 billion won will be used to enhance its green energy capacity covering wind power, fuel cells and hydrogen. Onshore and offshore wind power system networks will be expanded, while leveraging water electrolysis technology to use nighttime electricity from wind farms to produce hydrogen.

In the biotech sector, Kolon Group will spend 450 billion won on drug discovery, clinical trials, process development and facility expansion. In the future mobility area, 100 billion won will be injected for urban air mobility and composite materials components for space launch vehicles.

About 450 billion won will be used to strengthen the competitiveness of its existing businesses, and 400 billion won to expand the existing business infrastructure.

On top of that, Kolon Group also vowed to provide more job opportunities for retired military personnel and firefighters, the disabled, and those from multicultural families.

Ahn Byung-duk, Vice Chairman and CEO of Kolon.

“Companies have a duty to give career development opportunities to those who deserve respect from society and those who need care and support. In Kolon Group, CEOs will directly manage the hiring and career development of them from now,” said Ahn Byung-duk, vice chairman and CEO of Kolon.

Under the scheme, CEOs of each affiliated unit will manage the job creation and promotion measures as a key performance indicator.

Retired military personnel will be hired first for the group’s mobility platform transport business, and then firefighters and police officers. The group will also increase employment of disabled athletes and those from multicultural and migrated families.

“Kolon will lead job creation for every corner of the society under the management policy to become a respectable company that lives and thrives with the society,” said a group official.

Korea’s top conglomerates recently have been competing with multibillion dollar investment pledges for next three to five years in new business areas during the term of President Yoon whose government promised various incentives and deregulations to promote private-led growth for future industries.

Eleven groups including the country’s top five – Samsung, SK, Hyundai Motor, LG and Lotte – announced a total of 1,061 trillion won capex scheme for now.

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