LG Chem in at No. 10 on C&EN’s Global Top 50

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LG Chem in at No. 10 on C&EN’s Global Top 50

LG Chem came in at No. 10 on a 2017 list of global chemical companies evaluated by C&EN, a weekly news magazine published by the American Chemical Society, the company said Tuesday.

It is the first time a Korean company has placed in the top 10.

The annual ranking, titled the “C&EN’s Global Top 50,” is based on a company’s revenue, operating profit and growth rate.

LG Chem, which generated $23.2 billion in revenue last year, climbed two spots from 12th in 2016, joining the top 10 club for the first time.

C&EN recognized LG Chem’s effort to expand its R&D workforce.

“LG Chem is planning a massive R&D expansion,” the magazine wrote.

“By the turn of the next decade, it wants to boost its R&D headcount by 800 to 6,300 people,” it added.

C&EN also took notice of LG Chem’s plan to set up a joint venture with China’s Huayou Cobalt by 2020 to enhance production of cathode materials needed when making electric vehicles battery.

LG Chem is investing $450 million in setting up the joint venture.

German chemical company BASF topped the list with revenue of $69.2 billion, followed by DowDuPont.

Among Asian companies, Chinese chemical firm Sinopec, Taiwanese Formosa Plastics and Japan’s Mitsubishi Chemical were all in the top 10.

The survey noted that the industry saw a boost last year on the back of an economic boom and rising oil prices.

According to the survey, the top 50 companies generated a total of $851 billion in chemical sales, a 12.2 percent year-on-year jump.

Korea’s Lotte Chemical came in the at No. 22 with revenue of $14 billion, followed by SK Innovation at No. 38 with $8.2 billion and Hanwha Chemical at No. 49 with $6.8 billion.


BY JIN EUN-SOO [jin.eunsoo@joongang.co.kr]
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