Hanwha Total becomes S.Korea’s largest polypropylene maker

Hanwha Total Petrochemical Co., a 50:50 joint venture between Hanwha Group and the French oil giant Total SE, has become the company with the largest polypropylene (PP) production capacity in South Korea.

The company on May 5 said that it has completed the extension of its PP and ethylene manufacturing facilities in Daesan, South Chungcheong Province, after having invested a total of 530 billion won ($470 million) in the 28-month construction project.

The PP and ethylene facilities extension will generate additional revenue of 840 billion won ($746 million) annually, according to the company’s estimates.

The extension adds 400,000 tons to Hanwha Total’s previous annual PP production capacity of 720,000 tons, making it the largest PP manufacturer in the country with the ability to supply 1.12 million tons annually.

PP is a synthetic plastic material widely used by consumers, in disposable food packaging, food containers and other household products, as well as by industries, in auto vehicles and electronic components.

The material is projected to see higher demand this year, given increasing use of disposable food packaging amid the ongoing pandemic.

The construction project has also increased the company’s annual production capacity for ethylene from the previous 1.38 million to 1.53 million tons.

The company noted that the new facility uses liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) instead of naphtha, a more costly petrochemical material commonly used for ethylene production, to produce ethylene, thereby maximizing cost efficiency.

A Hanwha Total representative said the completion also marks an end to its long-term product diversification project, for which the company had invested a total of 1.47 trillion won ($1.3 billion) since 2017, to move away from basic petrochemicals toward synthetic chemicals of higher value.

“Hanwha Total, with the successful completion of the facilities expansion, will continue to maximize production efficiency and enter new business segments for future growth,” said the representative.

Write to Kyung-min Kang at kkm1026@hankyung.com
Daniel Cho edited this article.