Samsung SDI achieves platinum status for waste management

Samsung SDI headquarters in Giheung, Gyeonggi [SAMSUNG SDI]

Samsung SDI received the highest level for its rate of landfill diversion from a U.S. safety testing and certification company, the battery maker said Wednesday.

Samsung SDI’s six operation sites in Korea met the Platinum standards for UL Solutions’ Zero Waste to Landfill (ZWTL) program, meaning that the facilities wholly diverted waste from landfills or incineration. The company extracts cobalt, nickel and lithium from the waste and recycles it or uses it as energy.

The ZWTL designations are classified based on the rate of landfill diversion, with platinum given for a 100 percent diversion rate. The ratings are used as an indication of a company's efforts for resource circularity.

Samsung SDI’s operation sites in Giheung, Gyeonggi and Cheongju, North Chungcheong, received the highest certification for the second year in a row.

The battery maker’s Wuxi operations received the Platinum certification, and those in Tianjin and Hungary the Gold, which is granted for a diversion rate between 95 to 99 percent.

Samsung SDI aims to achieve Platinum status for all of its operations both at home and abroad, including those in Malaysia and Vietnam.

In May last year, the company set up the Recycle Research Lab under its R&D Center to further enhance the recovery rate of battery materials.

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