LG is working towards carbon neutrality (net zero) by reducing net carbon emissions to zero by 2050.
On the 14th, LG published the ‘LG Net Zero Special Report 2024’, revealing the 2024 carbon reduction results and future implementation plans. The report targets seven subsidiaries of LG, which account for the majority of the group’s carbon emissions: LG Electronics, LG Display, LG Innotek, LG Chem, LG Energy Solution, LG Household & Health Care, and LG Uplus.
Since announcing its first group-wide carbon neutrality roadmap in February 2023, LG has been publicly monitoring its annual performance. The company has set reduction targets that align with international society’s recommendations, the government’s national greenhouse gas reduction commitments (NDC), and customer requirements.
LG aims to reduce emissions by 34% by 2030 and 52% by 2040 compared to 2018, with the goal of achieving net zero by 2050. Last year, LG reduced its carbon emissions by approximately 5.39 million tons, an additional 26% from the previous year. Based on a reduction standard of 40 tons per hectare of forest, this is equivalent to the absorption capacity of an area about 2.2 times the size of Seoul.
Out of the total reduction, 1.25 million tons were cut through direct reduction activities, and 4.14 million tons were reduced by converting to renewable energy. Direct reductions increased by about 20% from the previous year. Subsidiaries like LG Chem plan to expand their direct reduction measures by employing low-carbon fuel conversion and hydrogen utilization technologies.
The transition rate to renewable energy has expanded to 30% as of 2024. Each subsidiary has converted its electricity usage to renewable energy through green premiums, renewable energy certificate purchases, and self-generation. LG operates a more refined reduction system by segmenting the carbon neutrality roadmap into subsidiaries, business sectors, countries, and site units by 2030.
The net zero report is available on LG’s official website, and a printed version is also published. LG is enhancing its climate risk management system according to international standards. Each subsidiary analyzes climate risk scenarios and potential financial impacts to establish response systems and has prepared response manuals considering physical climate risks like typhoons and floods.
LG Electronics is diversifying its stock supply chain to prepare for supply chain disruptions due to physical disasters, while LG Uplus is installing flood barriers to prevent equipment submersion in case of floods.
LG is expanding its cleantech business, which is one of the future growth axes—ABC (AI, Bio, Cleantech). LG Electronics is improving energy efficiency with heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) solutions, LG Chem is producing cathode materials through battery recycling, and LG Uplus is practicing carbon reduction by establishing an eco-friendly urban data center in Pyeongchon, Gyeonggi-do. These cleantech business initiatives align with the government’s K-taxonomy, which is the standard for green economic activities.
An LG representative stated, “We will create substantial carbon neutrality achievements through systematic climate response and continuous management, preparing for a sustainable future.”