[Sponsored Report] New chapter for compounded resin abroad in Europe

Top: GS Caltex’s oil tanker is shipping out exports. Bottom: A ceremony to celebrate the completion of the compounded resin plant in the Czech Republic was held this October.

GS Caltex has been maintaining its reputation as an innovative global company. The nation’s second-largest oil refiner had its status confirmed last December when it received a $25 billion Export Tower Award, the highest export award there is, from the Korea International Trade Association. It had also received a $20 billion Export Tower Award in 2011, becoming the first oil refining company to do so.

Petroleum products made with refined crude oil take up a huge portion of its exports. In the course of 12 months, between July 2011 and last June, the company imported $30.6 billion worth of crude oil, with which it produced high value-added petroleum products. It then exported products worth $25.4 billion, and earned back around 83 percent of foreign currency. Earning $25 billion through exports is similar to exporting 1.25 million Sonata vehicles and 225 supertankers.

However, the company’s global performance is not limited to exporting. According to GS Caltex, its competitive edge lies in expanding to overseas markets and diversifying its product portfolio.

Recently, compounded resin, or functional plastic widely used as raw material for automobiles and other home electronic appliances, has been a core part of the company’s global strategies.

GS Caltex is currently the only producer of compounded resin in Korea. Based on domestic success, the company has been aggressively seeking opportunities abroad.

In addition to active expansion in China, with Langfang and Suzhou as bases, the company is also reaching out to Europe. In 2011, GS Caltex Czech became the first Korean company to enter the business sector in Europe. This October, the company finished building a compounded resin plant in Karvina, the Czech Republic, to target the European market such as Russia.

Built on 40,000 square meters (4,840 square yards) of land at an industrial complex in Karvina, the plant has an annual production capacity of 30,000 tons. With the Czech plant’s additional production every year, GS Caltex now has a total production capacity of 190,000 tons. The new Czech plant will also keep multiplying in scale; it will produce 50,000 tons by 2016. With further expansions of production facilities scheduled to take place in the domestic and Chinese markets, the total production amount of compounded resins will reach 240,000 tons by that year.

Products made at the Czech plant will be sold to domestic companies that entered into Europe, such as Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors, LG Electronics and Samsung Electronics, and also to global automobile companies such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Volkswagen. The plan is to raise the annual sales revenue to 100 billion won ($94.2 million) by 2017, said the company.

“Completion of the Czech plant symbolizes a meaningful step, as we officially begin the production of compounded resin in Europe,” said Vice Chairman Huh Jin-soo. “GS Caltex will continue to make overseas investments to strengthen global competitiveness.”