KCC is embarking on a powerful takeoff toward the global stage. Its aspiration is to stand tall as the world’s leading precision chemical company and surpass its image as the largest company in Korea specializing in building and industrial materials. The driving force for ‘global management’ pursued by KCC comes from the company’s confidence in its environment-friendly products and new technology development.

 ■ Entering the global stage to become the world’s leading company

 KCC, by declaring this year as the ‘year of its 2nd foundation to prepare for the next 50 years’, is concentrating its capabilities to realize its vision of advancing from a company specializing in building materials and paints to a precision chemical company with an outstanding international reputation. In his New Year’s speech, President Jeong Mong-jin emphasized that, “This year, we will continuously expand our existing business areas at each worksite in Korea and overseas. At the same time, we must now strengthen our global capacities for promoting new businesses, such as the silicon business, and expanding overseas business sites.” He announced the plan to make ‘global KCC’ by globalizing the company’s business structure.
- Plant in Singapore
- Kunsan Plant in China (Name: Kumgang Chemical Engineering (Kunsan) Ltd./ KCK)
- Beijing Plant in China (Name: Kumgang Chemical Engineering (Beijing) Ltd./ KCB)
- Guangzhou Plant in China (Name: Kumgang Chemical Engineering (Guangzhou) Ltd./ KCG)
- Plant in India
- Plant in Turkey

In 2008, sales figures from these 6 overseas production bases is forecasted to be app. $300M. To strengthen global capacities, KCC is planning to further secure its existing core business capacities at the same time as systematically making preparations for accumulating core technologies, strengthening brand capacities, advancing administration support system and securing personnel equipped with global capacities.

In addition, as the No. 1 composite company in Korea that specializes in building and industrial materials, KCC has established the policy of creating a corporate vision for its new takeoff of becoming ‘strong KCC, reliable KCC and global KCC’ so that it will continue to set the standard for quality advancement by relying on corporate competitiveness based on customers’ trust. Together with this, KCC is doing its best to develop R&D capacities that create high added values through future-oriented R&D activities based on technological leadership.

■ Silicon production, a new growth engine, is the future of KCC

As the first in Korea to succeed in commercial silicon production in 2004, KCC declared that, “Silicon manufacturing technology, indeed, is the growth engine of the future to sustain KCC over the next 50 years.” KCC also expressed its aspiration to become one of the world’s four leading silicon companies through an extensive investment of more than KRW 1000 billion by 2012.

Silicon is being highlighted as the best resource to replace petroleum in today’s era of high oil price. In particular, silicon is being widely used in entire areas of industry, such as aerospace, defense, automobile, precision chemical, building, electrical/electronic, mechanical engineering, medical/pharmaceutical, cosmetics, household items, paper/film, solar cells and semiconductors.

With operations of the Jeonju Silicon Plant at an annual production of app. 30,000 tons, KCC additionally increased its Daejuk Silicon Plant output to app. 70,000 tons last year. KCC is planning to advance as one of the world’s four leading silicon companies by increasing annual production volume to app. 200,000 tons by 2012.
 

■ Declaring entry into poly-silicon business

Earlier last month, KCC announced the plan to enter the poly-silicon business, the core material of photovoltaic power generation. At the moment, the supply of poly-silicon, the main ingredient for solar cells and semiconductor wafers, is completely dependent on importation. Only few companies in advanced countries such as America, Japan and Germany hold the original technology. The reason KCC decided to advance into the poly-silicon business is because the company is confident of securing independent technological power and has secured stable demand for the future.

KCC has already concluded long-term supply contracts of $100M for 6 years from 2008 to 2013 with Solar Power Industries of the US. Also, at the end of last month, KCC concluded another long-term supply contract of app. $100M with Semi Materials.