SK Incheon Petrochem to test run farm management project

Officials from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs inspect a liquid fertilizer production plant in Gochang, North Jeolla. [SK INCHEON PETROCHEM]

SK Incheon Petrochem, SK Innovation’s wholly-owned oil and chemical subsidiary, will begin a test run of a livestock farm management project with the agriculture ministry and a local farm cooperative.

The ultimate goal is to make the livestock industry environmentally friendlier and cut carbon emissions by generating biogas from livestock manure, according to the company.

SK Incheon Petrochem held a working group meeting with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and NongHyup Agribusiness Group — also known as the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation — on Friday at Livestock Environmental Management Institute in Sejong, to discuss details for joint pilot projects on livestock farm management systems.

SK Incheon Petrochem plans to begin the test operation of the odor control system at NongHyup’s livestock farm in Gochang, North Jeolla, this year. The chemical company will install water and chemical “scrubbers” for odor control at liquid fertilizer facilities, and also adopt a fire prevention and safety system based on an advanced surveillance camera.

In the longer term, they hope to run a biogas plant to generate electricity using biogas made of organic waste. About 22,000 tons of greenhouse gases are expected to be cut per one biogas facility a year, according to SK Incheon Petrochem.

The meeting came five months after the three parties signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to jointly develop an “eco-friendly livestock business model.”

The MOU, signed on June 14, was aimed at establishing an advanced environment management system at livestock farms and developing a renewable energy business using livestock manure, based on SK Incheon Petrochem’s technology and know-how on wastewater treatment, odor control and energy projects.

“By adopting our environment management technique and know-how related to livestock farms through the test operations, we will actively support the local industry in making eco-friendly progress,” said Lee Gyu-ho, head of SK Incheon Petrochem’s safety, health and environment technology division.

BY SHIN HA-NEE [shin.hanee@joongang.co.kr]