Honam Petrochemical aims to become the best petrochemical company in Asia through continued innovation
Honam Petrochemical Corp. has drawn up plans to become the best petrochemical company in Asia by posting 40 trillion won in sales in 2018. In achieving this goal, the company plans to record 30% of its sales by focusing its investment on environment-friendly material business and new & and renewable energy business sectors. The company aims to reduce energy consumption by 30% compared to 2009 through energy saving activities and new technology development.
Honam Petrochemical will promote environmental management and energy-saving activities. Its employees are encouraged to suggest ideas about their know-hows in green technology, desirable green marketing, how to be a more environment-friendlier company, how to produce environment-friendlier products, and how to practice environment-friendly lifestyles such as taking part in a car-free day.
Honam Petrochemical’s Yeosu Plant regularly sends emails to all employees to inform them of everyday life ideas in order to promote environment-friendly lifestyles. The company has reduced the consumption of its company houses by 10% through the Green House Event as well as distributes stickers informing people of the performances of the event.
To prevent energy waste, employees organized as a team of two, monitor and check areas such as heating and cooling, hot water usage, and electrical business machinerie usage. The company has also selected energy experts among plant employees as well as developed energy-saving items by running an energy task force team.
Last year, the company pushed for the Energy Diet 335 and developed items that can reduce energy use by 30% and save 50 billion won. Around 316 items listed on 1,041 pages will be put into practice, step by step. These activities paid off well with the Yeosu Plant when it was selected as an excellent energy-saving business site by the government.
The company’s Daesan Plant is saving energy by introducing innovative new technologies. In the past, mono-ethylene glycol (MEG) plants produced materials for textiles, which resulted in a byproduct, diethylene glycol (DEG) which consumes an additional 10% of energy usage. However, a new OMEGA process produces MEG only. This new method was commercialized by Honam Petrochemical for the first time in the world. The new OMEGA process uses 10% less energy than old plants. By adopting the new method, Honam Petrochemical reduces CO2 emissions by 17,500 tons every year.
Furthermore, the SM plant which produces materials for Styrofoam and tires has reduced CO2 emissions by 110,000 tons a year by applying a multi-effect method which recycles waste heat. The company also succeeded in collecting CO2 by developing and using an innovative method called “oxy-fuel combustion.” This method has reduced CO2 emissions by 68,000 tons.
At present, Honam Petrochemical is in the middle of registering its patent rights of enabling MEG usage only both at home and abroad. and It is also expectings to export the technology. The company is expediting the building of an IT-based system in order to manage diverse activities. Since last June, the company has been developing the GEMS (Greenhouse gas & Energy Management System) and aims to finish the project by this November.
The company aims to maximize the driving force behind the reduction activities by measuring energy use, gathering statistics along with analysis, a systematic emission reduction management, sharing the internal carbon trading permit with its performances, and evaluating all this through the systems. The Daedeok Research Center is in charge of green-growth-based technologies. They are developing biopolymer, new & renewable energy, environment-friendly coating, fire-resistant materials, ultra-light new materials, as well as seeking competitive environment-friendly material business items under the goal of becoming a “green supporting business.”
Honam Petrochemical received a presidential medal in 2008, and was selected as an environment-friendly company in 2009, as well asand a green company in 2010. This is in recognition for its low-carbon green management along with its efforts inat reducing energy consumption. The company is planning on continually conducting low-carbon management activities as a petrochemical leader that hopes to fulfill its social and environmental responsibilities by practicing green management in the future.